"I played with Kylian Mbappe when he was 18," the Lille striker said. "He was so mature for his age and I have the same feeling with Ayyoub." But the teenage Moroccan's "rise to prominence is nothing new" in the words of another club insider. The manner in which the midfielder impressed at the World Cup did not come as a surprise to anyone in Creil, either, where the 18-year-old grew up in northern France.
"No one is shocked here," said his former coach Sofiane Khair. "For us, it's logical." Now, Bouaddi is on his way to the Premier League, with Manchester City agreeing a deal worth 100m euros (£86m) in principle to sign him from Lille. Bouaddi is not just in demand at club level - Morocco and France also both desperately wanted him.
Giroud, a World Cup winner, was in his ear, "teasing him the whole year regarding picking France". Bouaddi may have represented Les Bleus throughout the youth age groups, but he has always been immensely proud of his family's roots. Explaining his ultimate decision to declare for Morocco, rather than the country of his birth, Bouaddi uploaded an old photograph on Instagram.
It captured the then 10-year-old in a Morocco shirt as he watched on from the stands at the 2018 World Cup. "I am aware of the privilege I have to defend these colours and I will give everything to best represent my country," he vowed. Bouaddi certainly backed up those words as Morocco became the first African nation to reach successive World Cup quarter-finals.
"Against players like Casemiro, Lucas Paqueta and Bruno Guimaraes, he showed not just quality but personality - a kind of positive arrogance," former Morocco international Hassan Kachloul told BBC Sport. "He had confidence, a great aura and a strong presence on the pitch. He thrives in that environment." However, to those who know Bouaddi best, such as former Creil coach Armand Doue, his performances were nothing out of the ordinary.
"He does this kind of match every weekend on the pitches of Ligue 1," he said. Bouaddi's ability to step up in such fashion has been a constant throughout his burgeoning career. The platform may have been even greater at the World Cup, but the unfazed teenager has relished competing against older players for much of his life.
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