Steve Nicol rubbishes claims about Liverpool and Rayan Cherki after Man City maul Reds in the cup

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Liverpool would be no higher in the Premier League table had they signed Rayan Cherki instead of Florian Wirtz, according to Reds legend Steve Nicol.Arne Slot met with Cherki last summer as a back-up target in case the deal for Wirtz fell through, but was seemingly happy to let him join Manchester City instead.Since then, the two No. 10s have been regularly compared, with Cherki shining during City’s FA Cup win over Liverpool on Saturday and generally outperforming Wirtz all season.

But, when asked if his former team would have been better off signing the Frenchman, Nicol said he’d rather the Reds stick with what they’ve got. Surely we've got no chance against them 😣 Photo Credit: Getty Images/Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images Liverpool still better off with Wirtz than CherkiComparisons with Cherki have not helped Wirtz this season, with the City man being signed for a fraction of his cost.However, when asked which team would be higher in the table if the two players had joined opposite clubs last year, Nicol said he didn’t believe Cherki would have changed Liverpool’s fortunes at all.“It would take more than just Cherki to make Liverpool better,” the 64-year-old claimed.“No, the fact that everybody’s talking about Alonso coming, if there’s one manager you can turn around and say knows how to get the best out of Wirtz, it would be Alonso.

So, the mere possibility that it’s going to be Alonso, I would keep Wirtz.”READ MORE: Steve Nicol says he’s why he’s changed his mind about Xabi Alonso taking charge at LiverpoolPhoto by Michael Regan/Getty ImagesCherki far superior to Wirtz statisticallyAlthough it is a fair point that Liverpool should stick with Wirtz, and the German probably has the higher ceiling of these two players, it is undeniable that Cherki has had a better season.After registering a lovely assist against the Reds on Saturday, the 22-year-old now has 10 goals and 13 assists for City this term. He’s also won the League Cup and could yet add to that with an FA Cup and even a Premier League title.Wirtz, meanwhile, has six goals and seven assists for Liverpool, which, although not as bad as some will like to make out, is just not even for a £116m player.On the face of it, deciding against a move for Cherki was a mistake by Liverpool, and there is an argument that they should have signed both he and Wirtz last year.