City’s negotiations with Lille for Ayyoub Bouaddi are moving into their final stages, according to Fabrizio Romano, with a club-to-club agreement close. At the same time, talks continue on the player’s side.
City have been in advanced discussions over the 18-year-old for more than a week, with reporting from Florian Plettenberg and Sacha Tavolieri describing personal terms as effectively agreed and a contract in place until 2031. Romano’s update frames the picture slightly differently, with City closing in on Lille first and the player side still being finalised — a reminder that even well-sourced reporting can vary in emphasis as a deal develops.
The financial gap has been the main sticking point. Lille have targeted a fee close to €100m, while City have pushed for a package worth around €90m fixed, with performance-related add-ons closing the difference. Bouaddi made 96 appearances for Lille’s first team without scoring a senior goal, but his performances at last year’s World Cup with Morocco pushed his valuation sharply upward.
He would arrive as City’s second major central midfield addition of the summer, following the £116m signing of Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest, and has been linked to a possible reshuffle involving Rodri’s future at the club.
Arsenal and Liverpool have both been credited with earlier interest but appear to have stepped back from the race.
Our Man City live transfer tracker has the latest on this and other deals this summer, with reporting via Fabrizio Romano on X.
