Manchester Metropolis have agreed a deal in precept value 100m euros (£85.6m) to signal 18-year-old Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi.
BBC Sport reported earlier this week that the 2 golf equipment had been in superior talks over a deal for the Morocco worldwide to affix Metropolis.
An settlement for {the teenager} to affix Enzo Maresca's facet is now in place, with Bouaddi now set to finish his protracted transfer to England with Lille accepting an preliminary price of £81.4m, plus £4.2m in add-ons.
Having offered midfielders Rodri to Barcelona in a £65m deal and Tijjani Reinders to Saudi Arabian facet Al-Qadsiah for £52m, Metropolis have prioritised central midfield as an space to strengthen.
They continue to be eager about Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez but it surely stays to be seen whether or not a deal may be struck.
They’ve already added England's Elliot Anderson for £116m from Nottingham Forest.
Metropolis host Bournemouth of their Premier League opener on Sunday (14:00 BST), having misplaced final weekend's Group Protect to Arsenal.
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Who’s Bouaddi?
Bouaddi impressed at this summer season's World Cup – beginning 5 of Morocco's six matches of their run to the quarter-finals – after a starring position in Lille's Champions League victory over Actual Madrid in 2024 introduced him on the large stage.
He features as a deep-lying conductor and would complement Anderson, who’s comfy as a box-to-box midfielder in addition to the quantity six position he performs for England.
Bouaddi has performed 88 occasions for Lille since making his debut in October 2023, three days after his sixteenth birthday, and helped them end third in Ligue 1 final season.
He grew to become the youngest footballer to ever play for Lille when he made his senior debut towards KI only a few days after turning 16 in 2023.
He was serenaded by these contained in the Stade Pierre-Mauroy after serving to Lille defeat Actual Madrid within the Champions League on his seventeenth birthday.
He then broke a document held by Eden Hazard after making 50 Ligue 1 appearances for Lille on the age of simply 18.
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