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Sidki Cherif: Angers' latest diamond in the rough

In the tradition of players like Nicolas Pépé, Mohamed-Ali Cho and Jeff Reine-Adélaïde, Sidiki Cherif is the latest academy product to impress for SCO Angers
E. DEVIN
Published on 10/27/2025 at 16:00
3-minute read
Sidiki Cherif has scored in each of Angers' last two Ligue 1 McDonald's matches

In the tradition of players like Nicolas Pépé, Mohamed-Ali Cho and Jeff Reine-Adélaïde, Sidiki Cherif is the latest academy product to impress for SCO Angers.

Part of a long tradition

When one thinks of the best young producers of talent in Ligue 1 McDonald's, the mind is more likely to go to the likes of Olympique Lyonnais or Stade Rennais over the course of the last decade, but while they may not have developed players to the level of French internationals like Nabil Fekir, Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué, Angers SCO have punched far above their weight in terms of talent development. Running one of the top flight's lowest budgets will have had something to do with that, to be sure, but Le SCO have regularly produced high-value players at a rate far greater than clubs of a comparable size.  

In addition to the aforementioned trio, the likes of Rayan Aït-Nouri and Yahia Fofana have also spent time being burnished in Brittany. Now, despite a challenging summer as far as transfer funds goes, Angers sit outside the bottom three, and much of their play is down to the rapid development of youngsters such as Marius Courcoul and Prosper Peter -- both 18. But with the sale of Esteban Lepaul, there has also been more pressure on the team's young attackers, and of late Sidiki Cherif has answered the call, scoring in each of his side's last two matches as they earned a draw and a win to pull away from the drop zone. 

From Guinea to Brittany

Born in the Guinean capital of Conakry, Cherif's family moved to the central Loire region of Saumur before he joined Angers' academy in 2019 aged 12. he was soon on the radar for France's youth international teams, and made his debut for the U-16s in 2022. He quickly rose through the ranks at club level and signed a first professional contract in 2023, an antecedent to his making a first team debut in January 2024, just weeks after his seventeenth birthday. 

While he's had the confidence of manager Alexandre Dujeux since being a part of the first team, he's also struggled with injury -- missing the last two months of last season with a thigh injury most prominently. Despite these setbacks, the club's belief in him was clear, as he signed a two year extension to that deal last September, tying him to the club through 2028. Able to play wide and centrally, his pace is his strongest asset. 

Speaking of the youngster's play postmatch at the weekend, Dujeux said, "Sidiki is powerful and attacks space very well. For him the first goal was to see him continue with training sessions and matches. He needed to reassure himself and his (first) goal against Monaco did him a lot of good."

With the confidence gained from that striker and having done the same at the weekend, Cherif is primed to continue his strong play and help his side rise up the table.

Read more:

>> Correa continues LOSC's Portugese tradition

>> Sébastien Pocognoli has Monaco solid at the back once more

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