Was this the best piece of skill in the Premier League this season? – Ignore Pep Guardiola and keep on breaking legs, Rayan Cherki
It was surely the best moment of individual skill this season, particularly because it actually led to Phil Foden’s goal. Pure mucking-around football audacity performed at the highest level with an end product! Incredible.
Stop what you're doing and marvel at this incredible RABONA assist from Manchester City's Rayan Cherki 🤩🩵
— Stan Sport Football (@StanSportFC) December 6, 2025
WOW.
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Grumpy guts manager Pep Guardiola wasn’t getting too excited, though. “Sometimes you love him, sometimes you hate him but he’s special … He has something that just mum and dad gave him,” he said.
Well, most people in Australia these days just want mum and dad to give them a house but sure, we’d have taken some Cherki ability too. But then, no doubt out of frustration, Pep started comparing the talented young Frenchman to the uncomparable.
“[Lionel] Messi is the best player to play the game but I never saw these kind of crosses. Crosses are fine, right or left or which part of your feet, it doesn’t matter. If it is effective, it is fine, but I like the simplicity because I learned from Messi that never make a mistake with the simple things.”
Geez, give the guy a break Pep. You were 2-0 up at the time and he pulled off something astounding. This is the sort of thing that makes highlight reels, attracts new fans and captivates kids. More of it please Rayan. Ignore Pep and keep on snapping our legs.
*Apparently the term comes from the Spanish phrase “hacerse la rabona” which means “to play hooky” or skip school. Yep, stick with me here. It’s something to do with how a player “skips” when they plant their leg to do it. We sort of get it. Just don’t try it at home if you’ve got old man legs.
Hang on a mo, Mo
Well that escalated quickly didn’t it. From Mohamed Salah sitting on the Liverpool bench for a few games to the Egyptian unloading on the club, giving the manager a rocket, saying he’d been thrown under the bus, and then something about his mum coming to watch him play his last game for the Reds next round. He was on such a roll we thought he was going to blame the club for England’s Ashes performance.
“I can’t believe I’m sitting on the bench for 90 minutes,” the angry Egyptian said. “I’m very, very disappointed. I have done so much for this club down the years and especially last season. Now I’m sitting on the bench and I don’t know why. It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus.”
We can’t believe it either, Mo! How dare a manager who is under pressure to keep his job put a player who is having a bit of a stinker of a season on the bench for a few games. Outrageous. That wouldn’t happen in the Saudi Pro League, which is probably where you’ll find Mo reasonably soon. You’re a deadset legend Mo but this seems like a power play gone mad.
Out-gunning Gunners
Aston Villa, hey? Hard to fathom that the team that started the season so badly is now looking so good, going toe-to-toe with the Gunners, scoring late to take all three points with a 2-1 win, and now sitting only three points off the top of the table. There’s a lot to like about them all of a sudden; they’re on a great run, they’re playing attacking football, have a superstar in the making in Morgan Rogers and a proven manager. We lauded Chelsea the other week and they’ve struggled since. So Villa, you’re next up. We think you look fantastic so expect the losses to start rolling in.
Viking clap
We should congratulate Erling “The Viking” Haaland on reaching 100 EPL goals. In only 111 games. Absolutely flamin’ amazing. The stats department tells us he beat Alan Shearer’s record by 13 games. Inevitably there are questions being posed about if could beat Shearer’s overall record of 260 goals. It won’t happen purely because he won’t hang around that long. If he’s not playing in the white of Real Madrid at some stage in the next few years then we’re a Dutchman (probably Ruud Gullit if we could choose). Shearer’s record is safe.
Mariners’ audacious, ‘unrealistic’, Socceroo bid falls flat
That sound you heard at about the 66th minute of the Manchester City vs Sunderland game? It was this column’s legs snapping while watching Rayan ‘Beef’ Cherki pull off his body-contorting “rabona”* assist.