Why Rayan Cherki Walks for 95% of the Game

Rayan Cherki covers 7.9km per 90 minutes in the Premier League. Phil Foden covers 12.8. Cherki ranks in the 14th percentile for defensive contribution among attacking midfielders — and the 96th for chances created. He walks for most of the match. He barely presses, barely tackles, wins almost nothing in the air. And he's producing assists at a rate nobody in the league can match. This is why the player who runs the least is the most creative in English football. The tactical reason walking works, the Man City system built to let him stand still, and why Cherki is the last of a dying breed — the pure number ten that modern football was supposed to have killed off. Work rate can be coached. Reading a pitch six seconds before everyone else cannot. Subscribe to AsWatch — As We Watch Football Together #cherki #rayancherki #mancity #premierleague #footballanalysis #mcfc #maresca #epl #playmaker #football