Manchester City Agree Deal for Ayyoub Bouaddi

Manchester City have struck an agreement in principle worth 100m euros (£86m) to sign Lille’s 18-year-old midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, as the Premier League champions accelerate their midfield rebuild.

The deal, reported earlier in the week as being at an advanced stage, is now effectively in place for the Morocco international to join Enzo Maresca’s squad. Only the final formalities stand between Bouaddi and a move that would make him one of the most expensive teenage signings in European football.

City’s push for Bouaddi comes in a summer of significant change at the heart of their team. With Rodri and Tijani Reijnders sold, the club identified central midfield as the priority area to reinforce and have moved aggressively to secure one of Europe’s most highly rated young talents.

Bouaddi is now expected to complete his long-anticipated switch to England, offering Maresca a fresh option in a reshaped engine room that will need to settle quickly if City are to maintain their domestic dominance.

City’s recruitment drive in midfield is not finished. They remain interested in Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez, although there is no agreement yet and it is unclear whether a deal can be thrashed out.

For now, Bouaddi is the one on his way. The next question is whether he arrives as the headline act of City’s new midfield era – or just the first piece of an even bigger rebuild.