Manchester City edged Arsenal 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium in Premier League Round 33, and Rayan Cherki put his stamp on it. Wearing No. 10 and working between attacking midfield and the right side, the Frenchman combined end product with tidy control. On Sofascore, he earned a strong Sofascore Rating of 8.4.

Goal plus constant threat

Cherki scored in the 2-1 win and kept Arsenal guessing throughout his 85 minutes. He fired 3 shots, saw 1 on target and 2 blocked, and even rattled the woodwork once. His chances carried an expected goals value of 0.16, with 0.80 expected goals on target, underlining the quality of his finishing.

Passing and chance creation

On the ball, Cherki connected 38 of 46 passes, with 34 of 41 completed in the opposition half to keep City advancing. He created 2 key passes and posted 0.13 expected assists, mixing short combinations with 2 accurate long balls from 3 attempts. From wide areas he delivered 5 crosses, 1 finding its mark, which kept Arsenal’s back line honest.

Carries, duels and work rate

The dribble threat was real. Cherki logged 24 ball carries covering 272.6 meters, including 6 progressive carries that gained 103.1 meters. His best single carry progressed play by 23.7 meters, a tidy illustration of his burst through midfield.

He backed that up with 3 duels won to 1 lost and went a perfect 3 of 3 in ground contests. There were 2 ball recoveries, just 1 dispossession, and 13 total possession losses, which is a fair trade-off for the attacking load he carried.

How it fits his season

This performance aligns neatly with his Premier League season profile. Cherki sits on 4 goals and 10 assists across 27 appearances, averaging a Sofascore Rating of 7.28. His creative output includes 47 key passes and 17 big chances created, supported by 907 accurate passes at 86% and 43 successful dribbles. He also owns 2 Team of the Week nods, showing this wasn’t a one-off spike.

For full match breakdowns, xG dashboards and heat maps, fans can find Cherki’s profile and Manchester City’s game data on Sofascore.