Man United Backed To Sign The “French Equivalent” Of Adam Wharton Who “Can Do Everything”

BACK David Tully Oct 31st 2025 Man United are interested in recruiting Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, according to reports. Speaking to United In Focus, journalist Graeme Bailey compared the 18-year-old to Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton, whilst also claiming he would be the perfect fit for Ruben Amorim’s system: “Bouaddi is a special talent, and United are fully aware of him. When you talk about Adam Wharton, this is the French equivalent but is younger and has more top-flight experience.” “He fits the bill for what United want, he can play in the double-pivot but he is just a modern-day top-class CDM – he can do everything, he really is that good.” Bouaddi has plenty of suitors in the Premier League It is not the first time that the Red Devils have been linked with the France Under-21 international, and his performances have reportedly attracted the attention of several other teams. The likes of Arsenal and  Liverpool are believed to have sent scouts to watch Bouaddi in action, while Brighton, Tottenham and Aston Villa are thought to be fans of the player as well. Man United are looking at several midfield targets It should be emphasised that Bouaddi is just one of the names currently under consideration. The recruitment department have also identified a number of other options. The interest in Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller is well documented. The German could be available for €50m (£44m) but he is more likely to move at the end of the season. Alternatives such as Wharton, Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Brighton’s Carlos Baleba are in the mix but all three could cost in excess of £100m. Bouaddi’s asking price is not known, but it seems unlikely that Lille would demand as much for the teenager. He is someone to keep a close eye on. Read more about the Manchester United First Team Squad for 2025/26 here David Tully David has worked as a football reporter for the last fifteen years. Having started as an intern at Snack Media, he then went on to become a freelancer, working on various different sites. At the start of 2023, he took up his current role as content writer for National World’s Football News Network.