Ayyoub Bouaddi has agreed a contract with Manchester City until 2031, with the club now pushing to finalise a fee in the region of €90 million for the 18-year-old Lille midfielder.
Personal terms have been struck. The remaining obstacle is the structure of the payment to Lille, with both sides confident that a resolution is close. Multiple sources now report that the deal is in its final stages.
The fee gap has narrowed to roughly €10 million in headline figures. Lille want €100 million. City are pushing for a fixed €90 million with bonuses on top. That difference — the final sticking point — is now the only thing separating the two clubs from an agreement.
CEO Ferran Soriano met Lille president Olivier Létang at the end of June, a direct intervention that signalled intent at the highest level. It mirrored the approach that landed Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. The negotiations have become particularly intense since then.
Bouaddi, 18, broke through at Lille last season in Ligue 1. He then caught the eye at the FIFA World Cup in North America with Morocco. European football’s most coveted young midfielders rarely come cheap.
If the deal goes through, Bouaddi will be the second major midfield signing of the summer, following Anderson. Enzo Maresca identified the rebuild of central midfield as the most pressing priority of his first window in charge. He and the pre-season squad are already in Hong Kong for opening fixtures, with the Community Shield against Arsenal looming in mid-August.
Kalvin Phillips, meanwhile, edges closer to a third season-long loan away from the club.