Hugo Viana and Manchester City keeping ‘close eye’ on Lille wonderkid Ayyoub Bouaddi | OneFootball

Manchester City are keeping a close eye on the situation of Lille and Morocco midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, as per a new report.

Bouaddi has established himself as one of the most coveted midfield prospects in European football after a remarkable rise through Lille‘s academy and into the first-team, having already surpassed Eden Hazard‘s previously-held record as the youngest player to make 50 Ligue 1 appearances for the club.

The 18-year-old committed his future to Lille in December 2025, signing a contract extension at Stade Pierre Mauroy that runs until June 2029, a deal that has not deterred clubs across Europe from continuing to track his situation.

Bouaddi has also been one of the standout performers at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, accelerating the interest of the clubs monitoring him ahead of the 2026-27 season.

Moretto: City see Bouaddi as highly appealing, situation being monitored

In a recent appearance on Radio MARCA, trusted transfer journalist Matteo Moretto has provided a fresh update on the race to sign Bouaddi this summer.

Addressing the widespread interest in Bouaddi across Europe, Moretto said: “However, there is a Premier League club keeping a close eye on his situation – and that club is Manchester City. They like him, he fits a profile that is highly appealing.”

City are understood to be one of several elite clubs with an interest in the teenager, with Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Liverpool and Arsenal all said to be among the sides tracking his progress – underlining the level of competition Manchester City would face in any pursuit of the midfielder.

Lille president Olivier Létang is understood to be holding out for a fee in the region of at least £70 million for a player widely considered the most talented to have emerged from the club’s academy since Hazard, though the 18-year-old’s recent World Cup performances are likely to have only strengthened that valuation considerably.

What would Bouaddi bring to Manchester City?

Bouaddi’s profile maps closely to the qualities City sporting director Hugo Viana and incoming manager Enzo Maresca are understood to prioritise in midfield – a technically assured, physically developed central midfielder with the composure to dictate tempo under pressure and the intelligence to function across multiple roles within the same system.

The Moroccan’s ability to combine defensive intensity with incisive distribution in tight spaces represents the kind of profile rarely available at his age – and the consistency with which he has performed at senior level since the age of 16 adds a layer of assurance that many teenage prospects cannot offer.

Whether Manchester City move beyond monitoring and into a formal approach for Bouaddi before the window closes remains to be seen – but with Moretto’s update confirming the level of genuine admiration inside the Etihad Stadium, the 18-year-old’s name is unlikely to disappear from City’s radar as the summer develops.