Manchester City’s perfect opening has brought Erling Haaland’s five goals in four appearances, but at the Estádio do Dragão the talk turned to Ayyoub Bouaddi, the 18-year-old midfielder being asked to fill the space left by Rodri.
Why it landed this week
- Manchester City have won each of their first three Premier League matches.
- Erling Haaland has scored five times across four games.
- Ayyoub Bouaddi made his first Champions League start in City’s win over Porto.
- Rodri’s departure has left City searching for a new presence at the base of midfield.
City’s Champions League victory in Porto gave Bouaddi his first start, and the Moroccan teenager was among the most warmly received performers on a night when the manager’s selection looked rather less like a long-term project and rather more like a present-tense decision.
Bouaddi arrived during the summer for €100 million after catching the eye at the previous World Cup. It was an enormous fee for a player still only 18, particularly for one signed with the difficult brief of becoming City’s answer to Rodri. So far, though, there are encouraging signs that the club’s calculation was not made on sentiment alone.
Haaland was particularly impressed by what he saw in Portugal. “He had a very good game and he has also been excellent in recent training,” the Norway striker said. “I told the president how well he had done. Honestly, I think we have a gem.”
Enzo Maresca, City’s new manager, also praised the midfielder’s composure. He noted that Bouaddi had misplaced two passes but did not allow either moment to hurry him into the sort of panic that can swallow a young player in a European away match.
“He was still getting into the box and remained calm,” Maresca said. “That tells you he is a good player. Players can panic after two misplaced passes, but he is 18 and he is an incredible footballer. He was magnificent. Congratulations to Ayyoub — that is why he is here. His performance was outstanding.”
Maresca also pointed to the youngster’s command of French, English and Spanish as another indication of his maturity, saying it helped explain why City worked so hard to bring him in.
Bouaddi, for his part, offered a measured response after a first senior European start that might have tempted others into a little trumpet-playing. “I still need to settle into the team more,” he said. “It was my first match as a starter and I hope it is the beginning of something good for what comes next.”
For City, the early evidence is pleasing: three league wins, a successful European opening and a new midfield prospect already comfortable enough to catch the eye alongside a striker in Haaland’s form.
SEO title: Manchester City’s Ayyoub Bouaddi earns praise after Porto win
SEO description: Manchester City teenager Ayyoub Bouaddi impressed Erling Haaland and manager Enzo Maresca on his first Champions League start against Porto.
