Lille line up Real Madrid midfielder as replacement for Man City-bound Ayyoub Bouaddi | OneFootball

Lille have identified Real Madrid’s Jorge Cestero as a potential replacement for Ayyoub Bouaddi as they prepare for the Moroccan’s expected departure to Manchester City.

Ayyoub Bouaddi has been one of the defining transfer stories of the summer, with Manchester City having worked for weeks to broker a deal with Lille that satisfies both clubs’ requirements around timing, fee and the young midfielder’s development pathway.

The 18-year-old is understood to have verbally agreed personal terms with Manchester City, with the outstanding discussions now centred on an agreement between the two clubs over the structure of a deal that has been complicated by Lille’s desire to retain Bouaddi on loan for the 2026-27 season.

Lille have now begun actively planning for life without their standout academy product, with the French club’s recruitment team identifying a specific successor capable of filling the void left by a teenager regarded as one of the finest midfield talents to emerge from French football in recent years.

His expected departure comes as Lille open a new chapter under former Real Madrid assistant Davide Ancelotti, with wholesale changes to the squad necessitating significant planning both in terms of incoming business and protecting the club’s long-term competitive standing.

Report: Cestero identified as Bouaddi successor as City move closes in

According to Matteo Moretto, Lille are now considering Real Madrid midfielder Jorge Cestero as a replacement for Bouaddi, with the Castilla prospect viewed internally as a player who fits the profile of the outgoing midfielder in terms of age, technical quality and developmental ceiling.

Cestero has impressed in Real Madrid’s reserve setup and has drawn attention from clubs across Europe for a midfield intelligence that bears comparison to the qualities that made Bouaddi such a sought-after prospect in the first place.

The identification of a specific successor signals that Lille regard Bouaddi’s departure as a matter of when rather than if, with the planning now moving beyond contingency into active recruitment – a clear indication that the club have accepted the direction of travel even as public statements from president Olivier Létang have suggested a tougher negotiating stance.

Manchester City’s summer transfer window so far

City’s pursuit of Bouaddi is their most significant ongoing piece of transfer business, following the club record £116 million signing of Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest and the imminent arrival of Geronimo Rulli from Marseille.

James Trafford is close to completing his move to Leeds United, while Tijjani Reijnders has emerged as a target for Nottingham Forest in a deal that would raise approximately £60 million.

Rodri‘s future also continues to develop, with Real Madrid understood to have an agreement with the player and club-to-club talks ongoing over the Spain international, who is into the final year of his contract at the Etihad Stadium.

It was expected that City would have completed more businesses by this stage of the transfer window, with departures of fringe players likely to gather pace in the coming weeks – which could facilitate the arrival of Bouaddi, to start with.