Eight cut-price stars Premier League clubs should sign from cash-strapped Lyon

At this point, Lyon could well find the next Karim Benzema to sell to the Premier League.

The seven-time French champions face relegation to the second tier at the end of the season if they cannot get their finances in order, after the club recently announced debts of £422m.

Under current spending rules, the easiest way to make the balance sheet look healthier would be to sell players in January. Historically one of the best in Europe, Lyon's youth system produced Benzema, Alexandre Lacazette, Hatem Ben Arfa, Anthony Martial, Nabil Fekir, Samuel Umtiti and Bradley Barcola, but the cupboard is virtually empty when Lyon needs it most.

Striker Rayan Cherki and midfielder Maxence Caqueret are homegrown, but neither is a certainty. Johann Lepenant has yet to take the decisive step and 17-year-old Enzo Molebe – not included here – has not yet been tested. Players like Alexandre Lacazette and Corentin Tolisso have proven themselves, but their age, contracts and wages make them unlikely targets.

Helpfully for Lyon, they have plenty of first-team players on the radar of Premier League clubs, although their perilous position means they are trading in a buyers' market. So they should be available to your club at a reduced price.

We have included the transfer market value of each player, although the final fee could be well below that.

Rayan Cherki

Age: 21

Position: Attacking midfielder/winger

Country: France/Algeria/Italy

Born in France and loved by both Algeria and Italy, Cherki's uncertain international situation reflects his career path to date. How can a player with such extravagant gifts still be uncapped at senior international level? Why is he still at Lyon anyway?

Let's start on the field. Cherki can play as an attacking midfielder or on either flank. He is capable of scoring and scoring goals and is comfortable with both feet.

He has made more than 150 appearances and doesn't turn 22 until August. On respected statistics database StatHead, the list of players deemed to have a similar style and level includes Cherki Cole Palmer, Ousmane Dembele and Florian Wirtz. What's not to like about it?

There have always been questions about Cherki's attitude within the squad and his willingness to work hard without the ball. But his ability alone means he's worth a point, especially with only 18 months left on his contract and Lyon in such a weak spot.

Possible landing spots: Liverpool, Newcastle, Manchester United

Transfer market value: £16.7 million

Malick Fofana

Age: 19

Position: Winger

Country: Belgium

Ask people to list the Premier League's best young players and most will mention Manchester United striker Alejandro Garnacho. What's exciting about Fofana is how well he's doing against the Argentinian on a number of counts.

Yes, the sample size is small. But Fofana, who is a year younger than Garnacho, ranks among his rivals in a number of categories when both were 19 years old. Fofana is more productive, hits the target more often and beats his opponent more often with the ball at his feet.

The left winger still has a lot to prove, but it is exciting that with so much turmoil off the pitch and in his first full season in a top five European league, Fofana is already an essential part of the starting XI.

Lyon are said to be looking for more than the £17million they paid last summer. Fofana was courted by Guinea as a youth, but chose Belgium, his native country, instead. There may be more than two in the running for his services in January.

Possible landing spots: Arsenal, Brighton, Tottenham

Transfer market value: £12.6 million

Gift Orban

Age: 22

Position: Forward

Country: Nigeria

Midway through the 2022-2023 season, a young Nigerian forward in Belgium began producing goalscoring numbers like few had ever seen.

After joining Ghent from Norwegian club Stabaek in January 2023, Orban scored twice on his debut, a 3-3 draw at Westerlo. He scored twelve times in his next ten games, including seven goals in four days against Waregem in the league and Turkish club Istanbul Basaksehir in the Conference League. Was this the next Erling Haaland?

Based on subsequent evidence, the answer to that question is still a resounding “no.” Orban still finished with 20 in 22 games that season, but the next was quieter, with just 15 in 46 games for Gent and Lyon. This season he has two out of five appearances.

Despite that early excitement, Orban is not looking ahead to the future like an elite. Still, he can certainly finish and for clubs knowing that a 10-goal striker could mean the difference between Premier League and Championship football next season, that is undoubtedly tempting.

Possible landing spots: Leicester, Brentford, West Ham

Transfer market value: £12.6 million

Maxence Caqueret

Age: 24

Position: Defensive midfielder

Country: France

It's hard to know what to make of Caqueret. Watch him in the center of a three-man midfield, in a team that dominates the ball, and he can look as impressive as anyone in France. His play from set pieces is reliable, he is calm in possession and works very hard.

Take a look at his heat map from last season: Caqueret was everywhere, represented by a huge blob of red that covered virtually the entire pitch.

And yet. Three years after his breakthrough season, Caqueret has yet to take the next step. His international career tells its own story: 24 caps for the French Under-21s, but has yet to join the big boys.

Competition for places in the French midfield is fierce, but Real Madrid star Aurelien Tchouameni is the same age as Caqueret and has already played 38 times for his country.

Maybe Caqueret just needs a change of scenery. It's definitely worth it.

Possible landing points: Aston Villa, Newcastle, Bournemouth

Transfer market value: £15.1 million

Benrahma said

Age: 29

Position: Winger

Country: Algeria

The former West Ham man is a proven Premier League player. Although he could frustrate coaches and supporters alike, Benrahma's tally at the top flight of English football stands at 110 appearances, 15 goals and 16 assists, and he is also a reliable deadball and penalty taker.

Given his talent and experience, Benrahma would be a strong signing for clubs in the bottom half of the Premier League. His representatives have strong connections in English football and would have no problem spreading his availability around the English top flight.

When Benrahma moved to Lyon, he said he was happy to be back in France. Yet the return proved bittersweet as the Algeria international has made just seven appearances this season, leaving him frustrated. A return to England seems to be the best option for all parties.

Possible landing spots: Wolves, Crystal Palace, Everton

Transfer market value: £12.6 million

Ernest Nuamah

Age: 21

Position: Winger

Country: Ghana

Had things gone differently last summer, Nuamah might already be playing in the Premier League. According to reports in France, the Ghanaian underwent a medical at Fulham before deciding at the eleventh hour that he did not want to go through with the move. There was also great interest in him from Everton.

Nuamah may not have a choice this time, even if his stock isn't as high as last summer. He has only started twice in Ligue 1 and played just 176 minutes in total, but it would not be a surprise if interest from England is reignited.

He took a familiar route to Europe, joining Denmark's Nordsjaelland through their partnership with Ghana's Right to Dream Academy, before making his Lyon debut in the 2023/24 season. Ghana failed to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations, but a move to the Premier League could be the ideal boost for Nuamah.

Possible landing spots: Fulham, Everton, Brentford, Bournemouth

Transfer market value: £15.1 million

Georges Mikautadze

Age: 24

Position: Forward

Country: Georgia

From Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to Giorgi Mamardashvili, from Giorgi Chakvetadze to Saba Goglichidze, Georgian football is big business right now. Mamardashvili will move to Liverpool next summer and Mikautadze may reach the Premier League even sooner.

Mikautadze, a star of Georgia's Euro 2024 campaign who shared the Golden Boot with three goals, is a great player. He only joined Lyon last summer after two successful seasons at Metz and although he has scored just twice in his first fifteen games, he is a regular in the team and regularly threatens the goal, scoring more than four shots per game , mainly from within. the penalty area.

Mikautadze was born in Lyon to Georgian parents and was just four when his mother predicted he would become a footballer.

He can't resist khinkali, a traditional Georgian dish that resembles dumplings. Premier League nutritionists may wince at that, but if he's scoring goals, does anyone else care?

Possible landing spots: Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Fulham

Transfer market value: £16.7 million

Johann Lepenant

Age: 22

Position: Central midfielder

Country: France

As a teenager, Lepenant attracted interest from Arsenal and there were many envious glances in Lyon's direction when they won the race for him in the summer of 2022, paying second-tier club Caen £4 million for his services. Thierry Henry is also a fan and names Lepenant as one of his backup players for last summer's Olympic football tournament.

After a promising start at Lyon, Lepenan t suffered a knee injury that kept him out for three months and never regained his place in the first team. Only this season, when Lyon sent him on loan to Nantes, has Lepenant rediscovered the spark that made top clubs in France and beyond so interested in him.

He can play as a number 10 or deeper in midfield, preferably as part of a three. Lepenant is currently sidelined due to a calf problem and is badly missed by Nantes, which is sliding towards the relegation zone.

Possible landing spots: Crystal Palace, Wolves, Ipswich

Transfer market value: £5.9 million