Ayyoub Bouaddi’s first start for City has certainly caught the eye beyond these shores.
The 18-year-old started alongside Enzo Fernandez in Tuesday night’s Champions League opener at Porto and played 75 minutes of the 2-0 victory. City’s match statistics recorded 55 passes at 98 per cent accuracy, while Bouaddi also impressed with his composure on a difficult European night.
Enzo Maresca was particularly pleased with that side of his performance. The City boss highlighted how calm the teenager has looked since arriving from Lille and said his maturity was one of the reasons the club had pushed so hard to sign him.
Erling Haaland went further.
The Norwegian revealed after the game that he had already told chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak how impressive Bouaddi had been in training, adding: “I think we’ve got a gem there, to be honest.”
The performance has now attracted attention in Spain. AS has highlighted Bouaddi as one of the major pieces in City’s rebuilt midfield after his display in Portugal, describing the teenager as a new jewel at Maresca’s disposal.
City agreed a deal with Lille worth €95m plus a further €5m in potential add-ons to sign the Morocco international during the summer.
It was an enormous investment in an 18-year-old, even one who had already played almost 100 senior games for Lille before moving to Manchester.
One start doesn’t tell City whether that investment will pay off. But Bouaddi was trusted from the start away to the Portuguese champions in the Champions League and looked perfectly comfortable with it.
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