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Manchester City summer signing Rayan Cherki arrived with a mixed reputation but has silenced plenty of critics in his firsts ix months
Not for the first time this season, the delivery from Rayan Cherki was perfect. As Pep Guardiola warned the Manchester City players that anybody returning from their holiday overweight would be left out of the squad for Forest, the 22-year-old posted on social media soon after a video of him cycling in a home gym.
Cherki using his holidays to get on the bike is probably not what many had in mind when his move to the Blues was announced. The Frenchman's talent was not in doubt when he left for Lyon but reports of other aspects of his game followed him across the Channel.
How could such a free spirit thrive under one of the strictest taskmasters in the game? Did the youngster have the humility and effort required to work as hard as it takes to make it in a Guardiola team? His reputation had improved during an impressive year under Paulo Fonseca at Lyon but he was still a divisive figure in France.
"Without going into caricature, it was obvious from the very beginning he was so gifted. His first game in Lyon he was doing things that nobody does so it was very impressive," explains L'Equipe journalist Pierre-Etienne Minonzio. "Quickly he became for some people the symbol of everything that is great in football, which is you play to be on the street, be happy, without thinking, to give pleasure to people.
"He was the symbol of the purest kind of football and for others it was exactly the contrary, it was about everything that is going wrong in football because at the end of every season there were lots of discussions of him leaving Lyon and salary issues and contract issues. It was a running gag. A lot of people said this is a guy who symbolises selfish football because he doesn't defend enough and work enough for the team. There were these arresting views."
There is some history with Guardiola giving French players short shrift at City. Samir Nasri was a similarly talismanic attacker who boasted about being perfect for the new manager in 2016 but was instantly reprimanded for arriving "overweight" to pre-season training and rarely used again, while Benjamin Mendy could also not stay as focused as he needed to.
As is the point with caricatures though, they are exaggerations. Debates over players will see facts stretched to strengthen points and the reality can become blurred. There is also change that comes with time, and Cherki appeared to pay more attention to every aspect of being a footballer under Fonseca last season when he enjoyed his most consistent year by far.
A goal off the bench on debut at Wolves was a dream start, but he struggled after starting against Spurs in the next game and then suffered an injury that would rob him of six weeks. That stopped him from being able to learn his new brief on the job, but he has quickly become popular within the squad cracking jokes around the group and is even seen as an example for young players to follow.
"He does all sorts of stuff in training, honestly. He's such a good player so when you're playing with him you have to look for him because he will make something happen," Divine Mukasa told the Manchester Evening News. "He's really unique - there's a lot to learn from him. He's a top player and I'm grateful to have the chance to learn from him."
Mukasa spent a lot of time looking for Cherki when they started together against Brentford, even if it was coincidental that the youngster's corner made its way to Cherki on the edge of the box to control with his chest, bring down with his left foot and then lash in with his right foot. The ability with both feet has quickly won over the Etihad, and more than one goal scored in recent weeks has been meet with ooohs and aaahs for Cherki's contribution that previously used to be reserved for Kevin De Bruyne.
That isn't to say that Cherki is the new De Bruyne, even if he has taken over the mantle of the most assists in the squad. Guardiola has been ostensibly critical of Cherki, to the point where one of France's main radio broadcasters RMC focused a show questioning what they considered harsh treatment.
City's manager didn't appear to be as thrilled with the rabona as everyone else, turning questions about it into sermons about how Lionel Messi focused on the simple stuff. He has also mentioned on a number of occasions when Cherki's defensive work has not been up to scratch, and has usually taken him off when it has been clocked.
As Guardiola admitted on Friday though, he is only being harsh to try and keep Cherki grounded and he would not be doing that if he was not seriously excited about the player. Recent performances, including at the Bernabeu, have convinced the City manager that this young man has the mentality for any game that the team needs.
And if Guardiola likes what he sees, it is quite possibly because it is very familiar to him. "He's crazy like me - two crazy guys!" Cherki said of Guardiola in October. "We talk about everything, it's unbelievable. Football is all my life. I eat football, I sleep football, I shower football. We have a big team and we want to win all the games."
That self-description from Cherki does not sound like the red flags emerging from France when he signed, and Cherki has also put to bed ideas that he cannot play in the same team as Phil Foden. The pair have started the last five matches together, resulting in five wins, and relish playing together.
One free hit for Cherki appears to be the upcoming World Cup. He is expected to get a place in the squad regardless, but standing in his way in the No.10 position is the world-class Michael Olise. It would take unbelievable performances to edge out the Bayern star, yet there is no jeopardy for Cherki to try.
Back in France, City is seen as the best shot he could have given himself to do just that. "For a lot of people in France it was the best thing he could do," explains Minozio. "I was so happy when he signed there because it's exactly what he needs. Pep is so good to put pressure on promising players and make them improve - Foden, Raheem Sterling.
"As for now, he won't be in the [France] starting team but maybe he is improving so much if he's going like that maybe the question could be asked in the next few months but he has to be consistent which he has not always been. For now, he remains behind Michael Olise.
"France is playing 4-2-3-1 with a No.10 which is good for Cherki but as for now what he shows is far behind what Michael Olise does. Olise with Bayern Munich, if you look at the stats and what he is doing and his overall game, Olise is one of the very very best No.10s in the world. Cherki is going in the direction but he's not there yet."
Cherki won't mind that and neither will City, with room to grow encouraged at any age never mind someone as young as Cherki is at 22. He only made his senior debut for the national team in summer in a stunning cameo against Spain in the Nations League, and while a start against Germany the next game was far less impressive.
Still, he held his own against Florian Wirtz and for City fans who were apoplectic earlier in the summer when it became apparent that Wirtz was choosing Liverpool over Guardiola's side. Signing Cherki for a third of the price was an opportunity, and his better start to life in the Premier League has delighted Blues.
Hopefully the manager is as happy when he looks at the scales on Christmas Day, but Cherki is increasingly maturing into a reliable pick for what is threatening to be one of the best teams in Europe. There is a hell of a lot of work still to go, yet it has been a fantastic start.
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