It was not until the beginning of November that Pep Guardiola let Rayan Cherki play for more than an hour in a Premier League match. The French player responded to that belief with two assists against Bournemouth, and quickly became a permanent choice when starting in 8/9 recent matches in the league.
Manchester City's streak of results in this period shows the clear reboot of the championship race, and Cherki is a decisive link. The late goal against Nottingham Forest last weekend helped City win all 3 points, but in terms of typicalness, Cherki's mark is more clearly shown in the way he created opportunities from live ball situations.
Since the beginning of November, Cherki has had 7 assists in the Premier League, more than any other player in the same period. Notably, unlike Bruno Fernandes or Harry Wilson who often create chances from set pieces, all 7 assists of Cherki came from live balls.
In the same period of time, no player in the Premier League had more than 3 assists from live balls. This shows the special level of the opportunity supply that Cherki brings.
With Guardiola, the focus is on bringing the ball to the "dangerous zone", where Cherki can put the greatest pressure on the opponent's defense structure. Against Nottingham Forest, although many of his touches appeared on the right wing, the decisive chances created originated from the central area.
The three chances Cherki created, including Tijjani Reijnders' assist for the opening goal, all came from forward passes right from the center. Since the beginning of November, no one in the Premier League has made more cross-court passes than Cherki.
That impact is directly meaningful to Man City's seasonal trajectory. Before the match against Bournemouth, they ranked eighth and the point gap made City closer to the middle group than the leading group.
The match against Bournemouth was also the first time Guardiola arranged for Cherki to start alongside Phil Foden, and since then The Citizens have won 7/8 matches in all competitions when this duo started together. The combination of two "creative stations" helps City no longer completely depend on the Haaland scoring scenario to cover up the system problem, but opens up more options for control and penetration from the midfield.
In other words, Cherki is not only improving some attacking statistics. He is contributing to adjusting Man City's way of creating an advantage, thereby changing the team's operating foundation in the key period of the season.
Man City possesses a group of high-level attacking players with mutually supportive skill structures. Jeremy Doku represents the ability to create breakthroughs with his ability to dribble, stretch the defense and force the opponent to adjust the formation distance. Haaland provides direct pressure in the penalty area, optimizing crosses, crosses and second balls with his ability to choose positions, finish and contest.
There are times when I scold him and there are also times when I just want to kiss him, so my feelings for Cherki are always very conflicting.
I want him to be free to show his special talent. We need to deploy the ball better from the lower line so that he receives more ball in that position. The second half is generally a bit better" - Guardiola said about Cherki.
