Morocco's Ayoub Bouaddi, the Lille midfielder, has moved closer to joining Manchester City this summer.
Transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano wrote on his "Facebook" account: "Negotiations over Ayoub Bouaddi's move to Manchester City have reached their final stages, and an agreement between the two clubs is now very close."
Romano added: "Manchester City are close to reaching an agreement with Lille over Bouaddi, while negotiations with the player over personal terms are ongoing."
City's interest comes after Bouaddi, still only 18, made his name as one of the brightest rising talents in European football. That form has turned him into a target for a host of the continent's biggest clubs.
At the Etihad, the teenager is viewed as one of the key projects for the future. That is especially true with Spain's Rodri now a strong candidate to leave the English club and return to the Spanish league.
Lille had long known they would struggle to keep hold of their young talent given the level of interest he has attracted from Europe's top clubs. City, though, stole a march on their rivals and turned that interest into advanced negotiations.