It would take a very clever person indeed to say at this stage where Ayyoub Bouaddi (18) will be playing in the 2026-27 season. Although he is reported to be very close to joining Manchester City – with whom he is said to have already reached an agreement – the Moroccan midfielder remains, for the time being, a Lille OSC player.

An important point that his chairman, Olivier Létang, present at a press conference on Friday, took great care to remind the media of. Whilst he explained that Ayyoub’s situation had “not changed” since he last spoke in mid-July, and acknowledged interest from “very, very big clubs”, the 53-year-old club executive was nevertheless keen to deny an “imminent deal with a club that plays in sky blue”, despite reportedly having received several concrete offers – not just from Manchester City – since the transfer window opened.

“I told you last time that I thought Ayyoub (Bouaddi) was going to stay with us, and I still stand by that,” he added. “The idea remains the same: to have a competitive team. If clubs come in at the end of the transfer window for a particular position and we’re not in a position to replace the player, then we won’t go ahead with the deal.”

And although an offer of €100m – matching the player’s valuation – would inevitably make him consider a move, Létang was careful to point out that the player’s own wishes were also a key factor in any transfer.

“We’re in regular contact with Ayyoub (Bouaddi); he’s not in a hurry to leave, and he’s very keen to stay here too. When you’re 18 and at a club like LOSC, where you have the opportunity to play a significant number of matches – including in the Champions League – you naturally ask yourself, why leave now? […] I’ll let him speak for himself when the time is right,” he concluded.