Cherki rules out Man Utd move by calling Amorim a COWARD

Robin Bairner

Updated: 11 Apr 2025 07:13 BST
4 min read

Rayan Cherki turned the heat up on Manchester United following a 2-2 draw with his Lyon side in the Europa League on Thursday.

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Cherki himself snatched a late equaliser for OL after the Red Devils had come from behind to lead in the Rhone Valley thanks to a strike from Joshua Zirkzee in the 88th minute.

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Rayan Cherki

F (R), M, AMC

Lyon

Rayan Cherki

F (R), M, AMC

Lyon

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€33.8M - €41.3M

But if the Red Devils arrived with a big reputation, the Lyon playmaker certainly wasn’t impressed as he branded United boss Ruben Amorim a coward for the manner in which he set up his team.

“When you see them with two defensive midfielders, it shows they really fear us. I hope they don’t do same again, because we’ll go there to attack and play good football with one thing in mind: win,” he told Canal+ after the fixture.

Cherki’s comments are all the more interesting given that Man Utd are one of the clubs linked with a move for him in the summer months.

Lyon are destined to sell their jewel, who has enjoyed something of a breakout year by finally realising his potential on a regular basis.

Borussia Dortmund, who will sell Giovanni Reyna in the summer, are another of the clubs following Cherki along with Liverpool and Manchester City.

© IMAGO - Rayan Cherki was not impressed by Man Utd

Cherki fuels animosity between Lyon and Man Utd

Cherki’s words come amid what has bubbled to become a heated rivalry between Lyon and Man Utd, fuelled by comments Red Devils goalkeeper Andre Onana made about the French club.

The shot-stopper claimed his side are “way better” than Lyon, prompting OL midfielder Nemanja Matic to respond that these comments were ironic coming from one of the worst keepers in Man Utd history.

“I think we are better than them, we just have to go there and show who we are. If we go there with a winning mentality and we are focused, stay compact and together and we follow the game plan we will be winning the game,” Onana said.

“Of course, it's not going to be easy, but I think we are way better than them. We all know the importance of this game, we will go there with the winning mentality, it's not our best season but we still have something to win and we will go for it.”

When you are one of the worst goalkeepers in Man Utd's history, you need to take care with what you're talking about

- Nemanja Matic on Andre Onana

Matic, a former Man Utd player, was cold in his response at the press conference.

“When you are one of the worst goalkeepers in Man Utd's history, you need to take care with what you're talking about... If De Gea, or Peter Schmeichel or Van der Sar say that, I will question myself but when you are statistically one of the worst goalkeepers in United's modern history, you need to show up first before you say that,” he said.

Cherki’s equaliser came after an Onana fumble, while the goalkeeper was also at fault for Thiago Almada’s opening goal, which arrived directly from a free kick.

Ultimately, the Lyon star set up a thrilling second leg at Old Trafford, while his comments about Amorim’s tactics are likelier to have won friends at Liverpool rather than Man Utd.