Manchester City reached a complete agreement with Lille to sign Moroccan midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi in a deal valued at a total of €100 million including add-ons, leading the player to miss today’s match against Angers after the French club gave the green light to finalize his transfer.
According to reports, Lille will receive €95 million as a base fee, rising to €100 million through add-ons, while Bouaddi had agreed on personal terms with Manchester City back in July, before negotiations between the two clubs successfully reached their final formula.
Bouaddi Becomes Manchester City’s Third Most Expensive Transfer
The transfer fee places Bouaddi third on the list of Manchester City’s most expensive signings, behind England’s Elliot Anderson—who joined this summer from Nottingham Forest for £116 million—and Jack Grealish, who cost the club’s treasury £100 million when purchased from Aston Villa in 2021.
City thus continues to rebuild its midfield following Rodri’s departure to Barcelona and Tijjani Reijnders’ move to Al Qadsiah. The club had strengthened its ranks during the summer with Anderson, Mathis Detourbet from Troyes, goalkeeper Pierce Charles from Sheffield Wednesday, and young winger Jeremy Monga from Leicester City, bringing their expenditure with the addition of Bouaddi close to £240 million in the first summer under Enzo Maresca.
Bouaddi also becomes the most expensive sale in Lille’s history, surpassing Nicolas Pépé’s transfer to Arsenal for €80 million in 2019, and Victor Osimhen’s move to Napoli for around €79 million the following year.
Most Expensive Arab Player in History
The €100 million sum places Bouaddi at the top of the list of the most expensive Arab players, surpassing Egypt’s Omar Marmoush, who transferred from Eintracht Frankfurt to Manchester City in a deal valued between €75 million and €80 million. The list also includes Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi, who cost Paris Saint-Germain around €70 million, Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez, who moved from Leicester to City for approximately €68 million, and Mohamed Salah, for whom Liverpool paid €42 million as a fixed fee to sign him from Roma.
Bouaddi’s Career Numbers: From Lille to Morocco
Born in October 2007, Bouaddi began his career with Lille’s first team on October 5, 2023, becoming—at 16 years and 3 days old—the youngest player to feature in a European club competition, before setting another record as the youngest player to appear in Ligue 1 during the current century. In his final season, he played 40 matches across all competitions, including 30 Ligue 1 appearances totaling 2,331 minutes and providing one assist, while helping Lille finish third and qualify for the UEFA Champions League.
The midfielder chose to represent Morocco over France, whose youth teams he had previously represented, making his senior debut for the Atlas Lions against Madagascar last June. He then started five of Morocco’s six World Cup matches, logging a total of 381 minutes and helping the national team reach the quarter-finals, combining composure in build-up play, ball-tackling ability, and space reading—qualities that prompted Manchester City to make this record investment.
