Manchester City have been reported to Fifa after being accused of the attempted “trafficking” of a schoolboy they beat Manchester United and Barcelona to sign.

Argentine side Vélez Sarsfield confirmed they had lodged a formal complaint over City’s recruitment of Benjamín Garré, who joined the Premier League leaders after turning 16 in July. Vélez claim City tried to purchase Garré from them when he was still 15, an approach they ­allege breached Fifa’s rules on the transfer of minors. They also say Garré, who has represented Argentina at under-15 level, had played for their amateur age-grade teams since he was 11 and that a move to City, and away from his family, was not in his best interests.

Raul Gámez, Vélez’s president, said on Wednesday: “Never have I experienced such an immoral act.”

There are severe restrictions on clubs signing players under the age of 18 from outside the European Union in order to prevent the exploitation of minors. Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid have all been hit with transfer bans in recent years for breaking the rule.