In an interview with “Carré”, OL captain Alexandre Lacazette said all the good things he thinks of his teammate Rayan Cherki, who has transformed this season.
Match after match, flash after flash, Rayan Cherki has been making everyone agree on him since October. But Alexandre Lacazette, his experienced teammate and captain at OL, had been convinced for a long time of the potential of the 21-year-old attacking midfielder.
In an interview with the media “Carré”, the former Gunner told his Cherki. Underlining, already, his personality. “Rayan Cherki? He’s endearing,” Lacazette first said. “That's really the term I used a week after meeting him. When I arrived from London, I heard so many things about him that are actually false… That it's a spoiled, arrogant, disrespectful brat who thinks he's I-don't-know-who…”
“He is aware that when he is at his level, the team is much better”
Quickly seduced by the man, Alexandre Lacazette is also a fan of the player, with whom he “understands” and “likes”. A player who seems to have reached a milestone in recent weeks, to finally offer performances that live up to his reputation.
What happened? Did Rayan Cherki experience something special? “He is a great football fan, a great lover of football, he always wants to play. He has a lot of technical qualities, but this season, I feel that his mentality has changed,” observes Lacazette. “He understood that he is at an important moment in his career, and that he needs the team to shine. That even if he has a good match but the team has a bad match, that doesn't matter. It won't go his way. He's aware that when he's at his level, the team is a lot better. I think he's really realized that this season, and that's why it's been a few games. 'He's incredible when he's like that, he's. unplayable.”
Perhaps freed, too, by his contractual situation. After a summer which saw him announced his departure from OL, then sidelined, before finally extending his contract, Rayan Cherki regained playing time and status within the locker room. “His false start caused a lot of noise because it’s Rayan Cherki,” continues Lacazette. “But it happens to a lot of players, and we don't hear about it. (…) But being sidelined, he suffered from it, what he wanted was to play football. He took it upon himself and came back even stronger.”
Alexandre Lacazette, during this time, never stopped talking to him, advising him. “It’s every day, it’s been two years,” he said. “Sometimes you have to yell at him, sometimes you encourage him… He's a little brother, so sometimes it takes time (laughs). But he's amazing.”
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