Bouaddi saga enters another week with no breakthrough
City's pursuit of Ayyoub Bouaddi has been running for weeks, and the shape of the deal is becoming familiar. Personal terms are widely reported as agreed. The player, presumably, is on board. And yet the move sits exactly where it has sat for some time: stuck on the fee.
Lille's president has publicly denied something along the way — the details of that denial are murky, but it has not shifted the needle. The gap between what Lille want and what City are prepared to pay has shown no sign of closing, and there is no indication either side is about to blink.
This is a transfer tracker, so here is the state of play as it stands: one box ticked, another not, and a public denial thrown in for good measure. It is the kind of standoff that tends to resolve itself with patience, or with one party deciding the whole thing is more trouble than it is worth.
Neither side has got there yet.