Man City in advanced talks to sign Ayyoub Bouaddi, 18, valued at €100m (£85.6m)
Manchester City are in advanced talks with Lille over a transfer for Morocco midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, with the negotiations reported on 17 August 2026. The Premier League club want to conclude the move this week after agreeing to sell Rodri to Barcelona.
Lille value the 18-year-old at 100 million euros (£85.6m). Bouaddi started five of Morocco's six matches as they reached the World Cup quarter-finals and had earlier drawn attention with a starring role in Lille's Champions League victory over Real Madrid in 2024.
Bouaddi operates as a deep-lying conductor, a profile the club view as complementary to summer signing Elliot Anderson, who is described as comfortable both as a box-to-box midfielder and in the number six role he occupies for England. Since making his debut for Lille in October 2023, three days after his 16th birthday, Bouaddi has featured 88 times for the French side and helped them finish third in Ligue 1 last season.
Barcelona have reached agreement to sign Rodri from Manchester City in a deal worth £65m. The Spain captain is set to complete the transfer in the coming days on a four-year contract.
Rodri, the 2024 Ballon d'Or winner, made 298 appearances across seven seasons at City after joining from Atletico Madrid in 2019 for a then club-record fee of £62.8m. He missed much of the 2024-25 campaign with a serious knee injury and had parts of last season disrupted by a hamstring problem.
Despite those setbacks, Rodri returned to form at the World Cup, leading Spain to their second global title and being named player of the tournament. It remains to be seen if a successful move for Bouaddi would affect City's interest in Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez, but well-placed sources say manager Enzo Maresca retains a strong interest in the Argentina midfielder.
City aim to finalise Bouaddi's transfer this week following the agreement to sell Rodri to Barcelona, while Rodri is expected to complete his move to Barcelona within days on a four-year deal.