Man City's spending 'out of control' amid 'extraordinary' Ayyoub Bouaddi claim - Insider
Manchester City would be taking a risk by signing Ayyoub Bouaddi after their £116million deal for Elliot Anderson.
That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider that, while the Moroccan international has a higher ceiling, the deal could backfire.
Rumours grew rapidly throughout Morocco's 2026 World Cup campaign, with Bouaddi outshining multiple big-name stars on the biggest stage of them all.
Despite interest from Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool, it appears that Enzo Maresca's side are the likeliest to land his signature in a deal worth upwards of £85m.
This comes just weeks after the Citizens splashed an eye-watering amount of money on Nottingham Forest's biggest star, with very few players leaving for a substantial fee yet.
Rival fans continue to question how Man City can spend so much with 115 financial charges hanging over the Etihad Stadium, though Borson is not concerned by that.
Man City must sell amid 'extraordinary' summer spending
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, however, Borson raised a red flag over the deal for Bouaddi, with huge uncertainty over the price tag this summer.
"I think Man City's spending is extraordinary. Shall we say, out of control, could be said. But they're going sell quite a few players," he said.
"You can't deny that if they were to buy Bouaddi for €100m (£85m) for a player of his age and experience, it's an extraordinary transfer to go with the Anderson one.
"At least Anderson has played two full Premier League seasons, plus a lot of England games, plus, the World Cup. He's got the look of a very expensive player.
"Bouaddi, of course, played for Morocco at the World Cup, but he's certainly a much higher-risk signing compared to Anderson.
"But then I think people would say that his ceiling is higher. But these are deals that are priced to perfection.
"If you're buying a player of 18 for €100m, he's got to be one of the best players in the world over the next few years, and that's a lot of pressure.
"That's also a guy coming to a new league, coming to a new place. I think it's going to be very hard. But they do look like they're gonna do it."
Which players could be sold to make room for Ayyoub Bouaddi?
There is absolutely no doubt that if City were to strike a deal for Bouaddi, whether that includes a loan back to Lille, players would need to be sold to balance the books.
Bernardo Silva and John Stones have both left on free transfers, meaning that the only benefit from their departure are the availability of wages.
However, it would appear that Savinho is close to joining Tottenham Hotspur, and that transfer could reach upwards of £65m this summer.
Players such as James Trafford, Rico Lewis, Tijjani Reijnders and Jack Grealish could all be sold, and that would go a long way to affording the move for Bouaddi.