City remain in direct club-to-club talks with Lille over Ayyoub Bouaddi, according to Fabrizio Romano, with City still the most interested party as negotiations continue with both the club and the player’s side.
The confirmation comes as Lille president Olivier Létang has pushed back publicly on the figures being reported. Létang says he has not discussed specific numbers and has declined talks with clubs able to pay during the World Cup, adding that he sees a strong chance Bouaddi stays for another season.
Privately, though, he is said to be pointing to considerably higher benchmarks than the £85m figure City have been working from — namely the £116m Nottingham Forest paid for Elliot Anderson and the fee Newcastle received for Sandro Tonali, comfortably north of £100m.
That gap helps explain why Romano’s update describes ongoing talks rather than an agreement. City had already reached personal terms with Bouaddi in principle, on a contract to 2031, and remain determined to sign him directly into the first-team squad rather than pursue the loan-back structure they originally considered.
Manchester United, Arsenal, Real Madrid and PSG have all been credited with interest at various points, though City are understood to have moved clearly ahead of that competition on the strength of their willingness to meet Lille’s valuation.
Where that valuation actually sits is now the live question. If Létang is holding out for an Anderson or Tonali-level fee, City’s £85m position may need to move — and Lille’s insistence they’re in no rush to sell gives them room to wait.
Our Man City transfer tracker will be updated to reflect the widening gap in price.
