Manchester City Near €100m Deal for Ayyoub Bouaddi

Manchester City have struck a deal worth up to €100m with Lille for Ayyoub Bouaddi, a move that underlines the scale and speed of Enzo Maresca’s midfield overhaul.

City will pay €95m (£81.4m) up front, with a further €5m in performance-related add-ons for the 18-year-old Morocco international. Once completed, the transfer will push the club’s summer outlay close to £200m, following the £116m arrival of Elliot Anderson earlier in the window.

Bouaddi was withdrawn from Lille’s Ligue 1 squad for Sunday’s game against Angers as negotiations accelerated. He is expected to undergo a medical in the coming days, with only the final formalities standing between him and a move to the Premier League champions.

A deep-lying midfielder who operates primarily as a No 6, Bouaddi has already built a reputation for maturity beyond his years. He started five of Morocco’s six matches at this summer’s World Cup, including the 2-0 quarter-final defeat by France, despite having only eight caps to his name.

His rise has been rapid. Bouaddi made his Lille debut in October 2023 in a Europa Conference League group fixture, becoming the youngest player ever to feature in the competition at 16 years and three days. That appearance marked him out as a prodigy; this deal confirms it.

City’s move for Bouaddi comes in the wake of Rodri’s departure. The majority of the fee will be covered by the £65m sale of the Spain midfielder to Barcelona, agreed last week. Losing the anchor of their treble-winning side forced City into a swift recalibration of their midfield plans.

Maresca already has one new option at the base of midfield. Anderson, signed from Newcastle for £116m, is making his debut in City’s Premier League opener against Bournemouth on Sunday. Comfortable as a No 6 or No 8, he offers tactical flexibility, which means Bouaddi is unlikely to walk straight into the starting XI.

Instead, City appear to be building layers. Youth, depth, and different profiles in the same area of the pitch, rather than a like-for-like Rodri replacement.

And they may not be done. City retain a strong interest in Chelsea’s Enzo Fernández. The London club are holding out for £120m for the Argentina midfielder, while City value him at a lower figure. Any move would require a significant shift in stance from at least one side.

For now, the spotlight falls on Bouaddi: a teenager stepping out of Lille, off the back of a breakout World Cup, into the most scrutinised midfield in Europe. How quickly he adapts could shape the rhythm of City’s new era under Maresca.