Blues ready to pay premium for teenage Moroccan
Manchester City are pushing hard to sign Ayyoub Bouaddi from Lille, but will likely have to pay close to €100 million (£85 million) to land the 18-year-old Moroccan midfielder.
David Ornstein reported in The Athletic's weekly Transfer DealSheet that City are pressing ahead with a move for Bouaddi. Lille, however, are demanding a fee in that region for the teenager who impressed at the World Cup with Morocco.
On the face of it, £85 million for an 18-year-old looks steep. But this summer has reset the market for midfielders. City have already shelled out £116 million for Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. Tottenham paid Newcastle £100 million for Sandro Tonali. Those deals have set the benchmark.
Bouaddi, based on his performances for Lille and his World Cup campaign, is already a proven quality midfielder. At 18, he looks like a generational prospect and the ideal long-term successor to Rodri. Obviously, he would have to kick on if City signed him, but all indications suggest he will.
Ornstein's report also confirmed that City have already spent big this window on Anderson, a powerful midfielder who joined from Forest. But the club remain in the market for another midfielder, with Bouaddi emerging as the preferred target.
The FA Cup and Carabao Cup holders know they will have to pay a premium. With fees for quality midfielders having exploded this summer, and given Bouaddi's talent and potential, it is a price City simply have to pay. If Bouaddi becomes the player he promises to be, £85 million could prove a shrewd piece of business.