Fulham agree cut-price fee for Chelsea, Man Utd-linked France star as Silva secures fourth signing
According to reports, Fulham are on the verge of signing French forward Rayan Cherki after agreeing a fee with Ligue 1 club Lyon.
Cherki has been linked with several Premier League clubs in recent years and was reportedly close to joining Chelsea in 2023.
Manchester United are also believed to have looked at the 21-year-old, who played for France at this summer’s Olympic Games.
An incredibly exciting and skillful forward, Cherki has already played 141 times for Lyon, scoring 17 goals and providing 25 assists.
Should he make the move to Craven Cottage, he will join with experience of playing in the Champions League and Europa League, though he is yet to win a trophy in his young career.
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Cherki has entered the final year of his contract at the French club, who appear to be hoping to cash in on their academy graduate, an academy that has produced stars like Karim Benzema, Sidney Govou, Alexandre Lacazette and Ludovic Guily.
There were high hopes for the 21-year-old when he broke into Lyon’s first team and the Ligue 1 outfit will no doubt be disappointed to see him move on. At least they are getting a fee for him.
Fulham agree to sign Lyon forward Cherki
Various reports claim that a fee has been agreed with Fulham. Marco Silva’s side will pay ‘an initial £12.7m plus £4.2m in performance related add-ons’.
This is a potential bargain for the Cottagers, who will add Cherki to a very exciting attack including summer signing Emile Smith Rowe, Alex Iwobi, Rodrigo Muniz and Adama Traore.
Reports of Cherki moving to Fulham came hours before the Londoners confirmed the signing of Burnley midfielder Sander Berge on a five-year contract.
The Norway international joins the Cottagers after the sale of Joao Palhinha, who left for Bayern Munich earlier in the transfer window.
Berge said: “It feels fantastic. It’s been a little bit back and forth the last few weeks, but I’m finally sitting here in the shirt in this beautiful stadium, knowing that my future is here, which feels great.
“Fulham has always been a team that excited me. I’ve played them both in the Championship and Premier League, and it’s fantastic how they play, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1.”
Berge could be in contention to make his debut for Marco Silva’s side against Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday at Craven Cottage.
He is a less combative midfielder than former Fulham favourite Joao Palhinha but is likely to directly replace him in Silva’s starting XI when he is up to speed.
Berge is certainly a downgrade on Palhinha but is still a very handy signing, even if he has been relegated in both of his full seasons in the Premier League.
The Norwegian is Fulham’s fourth signing of the summer after Smith Rowe, Ryan Sessegnon and Jorge Cuenca, with Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen and Cherki expected to follow.
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