Ayyoub Bouaddi
Club: LOSC Lille
Nationality: French, Moroccan (Senlis)
Age: 17 (October 2, 2007)
Position: Midfielder
Preferred Foot: Right
Height: 185cm
€25Mill
Contract Expires: 30.06.2027
(according to Transfermarkt.com)
Browse the scout report of Ayyoub Bouaddi:
Who is Ayyoub Bouaddi?
Ayyoub Bouaddi is a 17-year old versatile midfielder currently playing for LOSC Lille in Ligue 1 after making his first team debut on October 5th, 2023 in a UEFA Europa Conference League match against KÍ at 16 years and 3 days, becoming the youngest player ever in a European club competition. It would go another 18 days before he received his Ligue 1 debut – receiving 23 minutes of match action.
From being a promising midfielder who received only 126 minutes in his debut season, Bouaddi has turned into a key player for LOSC Lille over the last year.
So far this season, Bouaddi has received 905 minutes in the French topflight as well as 405 minutes in the UEFA Champions League, spread over 26 appearances making one assist in each competition.
Standing at 1.85 meters tall, the new French wonderkid is currently showcasing exceptional technical skills and a mature understanding of the game that immediately draws similarities to Adrien Rabiot, Bruno Guimarães or Marco Verratti. We’ll get back to why that is later on in this scout report of Ayyoub Bouaddi.
Currently wearing the number 32 shirt at LOSC Lille, the French wonderkid of Moroccan descent has risen quickly through the club’s ranks after joining the Lille Academy at the age of 13, when he moved from AFC Creil, a local team located 10km on the outskirt of the beautiful city of Senlis.
On his 17th birthday, Bouaddi was selected to be at the heart of the Lille midfield against the current UCL title holder Real Madrid. Up against Jude Bellingham, Bouaddi showcased his amazing skills and composure – helping his side pulling off an amazing 1-0 win on home soil, in what might be one of the greatest moments of Bouaddi’s career so far!
By displaying maturity and extraordinary skills above his age, Bouaddi was soon following in the footsteps of Leny Yoro, Eden Hazard, Franck Ribery and Benjamin Pavard who are all Lille graduates with honorable careers.
Bouaddi has represented France at U16, U17, U18, and U20 levels at a total of 17 occasions but he wrote himself into the history books when he was called-up and represented the French Under-21s on November 15th, 2024, becoming the third-youngest player in the team’s history – only beaten by Eduardo Camavinga and M’Baye Niang (16y-8m-14d). Although he is eligible to play for Morocco due to his heritage, Bouaddi might be the complete midfielder the French national team need to lift another World Cup trophy in the future.
In our scout report of Ayyoub Bouaddi we will take a closer look at his amazing skills and why we believe the French teenager rising through at Lille might be one of the greatest signings in the next iteration of Football Manager, believed to be FM26.
Positional Abilities:
Ayyoub Bouaddi can be described as a complete midfielder. Although he primarily operates as a central midfielder, he excels in both defensive and offensive roles. His versatility allows him to function effectively as a deep-lying playmaker, orchestrating play from deeper positions, or as an advanced midfielder, contributing to offensive movements.
He has also demonstrated the capability to play as a defensive midfielder, consistently demanding the ball and controlling the game’s tempo but he has also been needed to cover in the centre-back role amidst injury crisis for Bruno Génésio.
- Primary Position: Central Midfielder (CM)
- Secondary Positions: Defensive Midfielder (DM), Attacking Midfielder (AM)
- Tertiary Positions: Wide Midfielder (M/AML), Central Defender (DC)
Style of Play:
Able to adapt to any position and role if required, the new French wonderkid midfielder who is capable of operating across the midfield spectrum could be what any manager desires of their midfielders these days.
Some of you may label him as a modern midfielder who can operate in the #6 position as deep-lying playmaker, as he dictates play in front of the defence and connects the dots when the team is playing out from the back, but can also operate more as a box-to-box midfielder, Mezzala or Advanced Playmaker in the #8 or false #10 role, according to the preferences by the manager.
One of the significant features of Ayyoub Bouaddi’s style of play is his magnificent tactical awareness, flexibility and technical abilities at the heart of the midfield. Often thriving in tiny spaces where he glides around the pitch to offer himself as a passing outlet in a manner that draws similarities to Xavi, Martin Ødegaard or Gavi, his abilities in between the lines enables the team to progress the ball from midfield to final third quickly and efficiently.
Although he is yet to make a huge number of assists, Bouaddi is a highly creative player who not only makes a high number of accurate passes per game, which is noted by his pass completion rate of 89.7% according to FBref, but is also got the tactical understanding to make important tackles or drive into the final third either with the ball glued to his feet or taking on the opposing defender by dribbling past them.
Check out Ayyoub Bouaddi’s Ligue 1 stats on FBref.
At the age of 17, he is already playing with an authority and character few others, except Warren Zaire-Emery or Gavi was able to exert at the same age. Unlike other talented midfielders these days, Ayyoub Bouaddi is an extraordinary #6 / #8 hybrid who is as good at orchestrating the play as well as being competent out of possession.
When you watch footage of him, you can’t help but be impressed by his incredible composure, technical abilities and awareness to receive the ball under pressure and make those key decisions that enables the team to retain possession and progress play into more dangerous areas of the field – no matter he receives the ball between the lines of defence and midfield, in the half spaces or in narrow spaces closer to the final third – making him into one of the most interesting press-resistant midfielders erupting in Europe these days.
Strengths
Composure Under Pressure:
Bouaddi’s ability to retain possession in tight spaces and make calm, calculated decisions stands out. His press resistance is elite for his age, often evading multiple markers with ease as he glides around the pitch with the ball glued to his feet.
Able to keep control of the ball and escape pressure until the team has re-organized themselves after winning back the ball, or when facing high-pressure when building out from the back, Bouaddi’s incredible ball control and balance enables him to create space for himself, or his teammates, to pick out a pass.
Passing Range & Vision:
He boasts a 90%+ pass completion rate in senior matches, excelling at short, medium, and progressive passes. His vision allows him to pick out teammates in advanced positions, acting as a deep-lying orchestrator who navigates and excels in tight spaces.
His playmaking abilities and composure under pressure enables him to keep calm under pressure and although he is still a teenager, he showcase an amazing football IQ (anticipation, decision and vision) when picking out passes.
His use of back-passes or lay-offs, switching of play from one side of the pitch to another, or apply other precise line-breaking passes to advance play into the final third enables Bouaddi to find teammates who aren’t covered or marked despite being put under intense pressure, as revealed in this highlight package of Bouaddi against Monaco published on X.
Gifted at ball progression and using intelligent passes and flair to gain ground, the new French wonderkid has everything a manager desires of his midfielders when the team is in possession – mostly due to his incredible creativity, vision and passing range.
Awareness & Spatial Understanding:
Key to his playing style which enables him to thrive both on and off the ball is his magnificent awareness and spatial understanding. Always understanding where to move on the pitch in order to receive the ball, improve defensive solidity or help his side to increase the likeliness of regaining possession, his anticipation and game IQ is remarkable, considering his young age.
His spatial understanding comes to effect both when intercepting passes from the opposition team’s attackers or in the build-up where he senses what will happen in the next sequence of play. Able to move into the right space at the right time it comes to effect in his high ball progression stats and effective passing play.
Ball-Carrying Ability:
Bouaddi drives forward with purpose, using his stride and technique to progress play into the final third. Using his flair, vision and incredible technique, his abilities to carry the ball into more dangerous areas of the pitch is simply breathtaking to watch.
In some situations, he might remind you of Paul Pogba or Patrick Vieira as he runs with the ball and tries to take on opponents to better help his side to move the ball out of pressurized situations.
At the same time, his dribbling skills and ability to carry the ball towards the final third is always done to ensure his side remains control of the situation – whether that being in attacking transition in the crucial moments after just recovering possession, or as he moves into the left half space to drag opposite markers out of possession to free up the space for Jonathan David or Sahraoui.
What’s oustanding with Bouaddi is his tactical understanding and awareness of the game to know when or where to pass, when to carry the ball or keep hold of it, before making a perfectly weighted pass, lay-off or a through ball that opens up the entire opposing team’s defensive line.
Defensive Awareness:
Long limbs, high work rate and sharp anticipation enable him to intercept passes and break up play effectively. His tackling is precise, often winning the ball cleanly from awkward angles and back pressures to recover possession – just like you want from a ball-winner.
By combining elite work rate, determination and strong positional awareness, he provides a layer of chaos in the opponent’s attacking plan as he has the ability to turn up quickly and push the ball off the opponent’s feet, and thereby carry the ball out of danger.
His defensive awareness, sublime work rate and tackling skills has also seen the player becoming an important player in the quest to regain possession high up the pitch. His abilities to cover ground and support defensively by embodying a modern midfielder’s tenacity has been one of the reasons he is able to make as many tackles per game as he does – currently 2.6 tackles per game (2nd in squad stats).
Versatility:
Comfortable in multiple midfield roles, he adapts seamlessly to tactical demands, whether anchoring the midfield or contributing offensively. He has vacated in the centre back role, as well as on the left flank as a wide midfielder.
Ordinary an attacking midfielder who has been moved deeper on the pitch due to his abilities to control the tempo of the game in the deep-lying playmaker role, Ayyoub Bouaddi’s ball control, tackling and intelligent movement both on and off the ball makes him able to play anywhere!
He has the rare ability of being both a creator, destroyer, tempo-setter or penetrator as he can do it all.
With outstanding football IQ and physicality, he could become a real diamond for any side favouring relationism and fluid football as he can stamp his mark by roaming around the entire spectrum of the pitch.
Weaknesses:
Physical Maturity:
At 185 cm, Bouaddi’s lanky frame lacks the robustness needed to dominate physical duels consistently against senior pros. He can be outmuscled in tight situations and although he doesn’t shy away from challenges for the ball, he can still improve his strength, balance and body frame when trying to shield the ball.
Aerial Ability:
Despite his height, he struggles in aerial challenges, winning a low percentage of headers, an area needing refinement for a complete midfield profile. So far, he has only won 0.64 aerial duels making him far from a threat at attacking set-pieces. However, due this height and anticipation he could be a good tracker at defensive set-pieces, or a potential corner and free-kick taker – meaning it isn’t a crucial weakness for his style of play, or role within the team.
Offensive Output:
His goal and assist tally remains modest (e.g., 1 assist in Ligue 1 by February 2025), as he prioritizes control over risk-taking in the final third. We could argue that his decision-making regarding passes and when to retain possession or when to initiate a line-breaking pass could be improved – making him slightly more dangerous on the ball and thereby a greater attacking threat for the opposition.
Even though a team requires a all-round player such as Bouaddi and not everyone can join the attacking line to try to score goals, his performance in front of the goal could be critized – whether that being shot selection, vision to see potential goalscoring opportunities or just his mentality in terms of risk-taking with the ball.
Although manager often judges performances by statistics, Bouaddi’s low output of assists, open play key passes or number of through balls and clear cut chances is worrying considering his natural creativity and flair. Bouaddi needs to get the freedom to make more touches in the attacking penalty area in order to stamp his mark in the final third just like Martin Ødegaard or Pedri.
This is something that needs to be improved if he should be the main creative outlet within the team.
At the moment it seems like he is afraid of making errors and mistakes but this might be the cause of the manager’s preference for his role rather than immaturity.
Consistency in High-Intensity Moments:
With fewer than 30 senior appearances, he’s still adjusting to the pace and physicality of top-tier football, a natural limitation at 17.
Youthful exuberance can lead to lapses, such as overcommitting in tackles or losing focus defensively (e.g., partly at fault for goals conceded vs. Sturm Graz in UCL). However, this is only natural at this stage of his career and should not be seen as a major weakness as the development of consistency will improve naturally with more game time as he gains experience against better opponents and in more physical demanding matches.
Ayyoub Bouaddi in Football Manager 2024
Ayyoub Bouaddi was unfortunately one month to young to be added in Football Manager 2024. However, we have mimic Ayyoub Bouaddi’s player profile in Football Manager 2024 by adding him into our renown NextGen wonderkids database.
If you’re curious to see how Ayyoub Bouaddi turns out in Football Manager and likes to see whether he will be a good or bad signing, Football Manager YouTuber FranklyFM84 takes a closer look at how Bouaddi’s future career might pan out by looking at the development of potential Football Manager 26 wonderkid Ayyoub Bouaddi 15 years into the future.
Experience the new French wonderkid Ayyoub Bouaddi on Football Manager 2024 as FranklyFM84 gives a unique insight to one of the special hybrid playmakers coming through in football Europe these days!
Conclusion:
Ayyoub Bouaddi is one of the most special complete midfielders erupting in European football these days.
By gaining more experience and enhances his offensive contributions, Bouaddi could evolve into a hybrid No. 6/No. 8 akin to Rodri or Frenkie de Jong, with the potential to anchor a top club’s midfield. Interest from Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, AC Milan and Juventus is already simmering, but Lille’s nurturing environment suits his growth.
Bouaddi’s ceiling is sky-high—a technically gifted, mentally mature talent with the versatility to dominate Europe’s biggest stages. He’s a must-watch prospect destined for greatness with the right development path – something that French football is outstanding at providing.
Regardless of his development in the coming years, we believe Ayyoub Bouaddi has the complete skillset and playmaking abilities to become a central figure in the French national team in the future and become the next international star coming through the Lille Academy since Leny Yoro.
Potential Rating: 8.5/10
