Manchester City Intensify Pursuit of Elliot Anderson

Manchester City refuse to back down in their pursuit of Elliot Anderson, with the Premier League champions driving hard to close a deal for the Nottingham Forest midfielder despite seeing their opening offer knocked back.

Forest have already rejected City’s first bid and are holding firm at a valuation of around £100 million for the 23-year-old England international. City, for their part, see the price closer to £80 million, leaving a sizeable gap that now defines one of the summer’s key transfer battles.

City push the pace

The setback has not slowed City. Club figures are described as determined to move quickly, keen to land their primary midfield target before Enzo Maresca’s first pre-season gets going in July. The message from the Etihad is clear: this is not a negotiation they intend to walk away from lightly.

While talks continue, City are keeping an eye on the wider market. Sandro Tonali of Newcastle United has been assessed as a possible alternative, a reminder that the champions will not allow themselves to be boxed in by a single option. Yet all indications remain the same – Anderson is the first choice, the player they want to build around in that role.

Anderson’s stance and England’s green light

The pursuit has been helped by Anderson’s own position. The former Newcastle United midfielder is understood to favour a move to City, even with Manchester United showing interest. That preference has given City confidence that, if they can find common ground with Forest, the deal will fall into place.

England manager Thomas Tuchel has already allowed Anderson to undergo a Manchester City medical during the FIFA World Cup in North America. It is a rare level of cooperation in the middle of a major tournament and underlines how advanced City want this move to be by the time domestic preparations resume.

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has reported that City will try to close the deal “as soon as possible”, with the club eager to wrap up the signing of their top midfield target well ahead of pre-season. Inside the corridors of power, the emphasis is on speed and certainty.

A hard negotiator at Forest

On the Forest side, this is no routine sale. Owner Evangelos Marinakis is believed to be handling negotiations personally from the City Ground. Reports have suggested that Forest’s demands touched as high as £125 million earlier in the process, even if the public stance now centres around the £100 million mark.

That leaves a broad corridor for negotiation between Forest’s expectations and City’s view of a fair fee. Both clubs know that the coming days will be crucial in narrowing that gap, with City reluctant to let talks drift and Forest equally aware of the value of a homegrown England international in a seller’s market.

Filling the Bernardo Silva void

The context behind City’s aggression is straightforward. Anderson has been on their radar as a primary midfield target for the best part of a year. Director of football Hugo Viana and incoming manager Maresca both see him as the right profile to replace Bernardo Silva, whose departure from the Etihad has left a major creative and tactical hole.

Anderson’s box-to-box energy, ability to link phases, and comfort operating in tight spaces fit the blueprint City have drawn up for the next evolution of their midfield. Maresca wants clarity before he starts shaping his system on the training ground; he does not want to spend pre-season wondering who will anchor that role.

Tonali remains in the background as a serious alternative if Forest dig in too deep. Yet, for now, City’s effort is fixed squarely on Anderson. They want him in sky blue, in the building, and on the training pitch as Maresca’s era begins.

The question now is simple: will Forest cash in at a compromise price, or will City be forced to test just how far they are willing to go for the midfielder they see as central to their next cycle?