Manchester City have made an opening offer for Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson.
Forest have rejected the bid but City’s pursuit of the England international remains ongoing. The City Ground club will look to get the best possible deal for Anderson if he is to leave the City Ground this summer.
Fellow midfielders Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez and Declan Rice all moved for in excess of £100m in recent years with the £105m total package Arsenal agreed to pay West Ham in July 2023 viewed by some as the price any suitor would need to beat in guarantees.
Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis and City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak spoke at UEFA’s Champions League dinner in Budapest last Thursday, which included numerous senior figures in football, but there is no suggestion they negotiated on Anderson, sources with knowledge of the meeting have told The Athletic.
Manchester United have also held an interest in the 23-year-old but their stance has long been they would not bid as high as the figures Forest are expected to want and other midfield targets have been seen as more credible. The Athletic reported on Tuesday that they have agreed a deal with Atalanta for Ederson.
Any move to City would add to what has already been a summer change at the Etihad Stadium with Pep Guardiola departing as manager after 10 years, and experienced leaders John Stones and Bernardo Silva also leaving.
Anderson is currently with England’s squad at a training camp in Florida preparing for this summer’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, and is set to play a key role for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
As reported by The Athletic on June 2, Forest have not been actively looking to sell Anderson this summer, but there has been a reluctant acceptance that he is likely to depart. He has three years remaining on his contract.
Anderson joined Forest from Newcastle United in a £35m deal which also included goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos going the other way, with the Englishman valued at £15m in that transaction. He has gone on to make 92 appearances for the club, including 50 in all competitions this season.
Why do City want Anderson?
Analysis by Manchester City correspondent Sam Lee
City are generally always in the market for top, English talent for obvious reasons, including homegrown regulations and the fact they are generally proven in the Premier League.
Anderson evidently fits that bill and is seen as the replacement for Bernardo Silva. Having made more touches than anybody else in the Premier League last season, for a side in Forest who are not heavy on possession, it shows how involved and influential he likes to be. He also showed with his fine goal at City in a 2-2 draw in March that he has class.
City have had some problems in recent years when trying to recruit players no better than their established stars, for example buying Kalvin Phillips and Nico Gonzalez who have, to different extents, not been the relatively cheap alternative that City were hoping for. But with Bernardo gone, City can aim for a top talent capable of going straight into the team and Anderson ticks a lot of boxes.
How important has he been to Forest?
Analysis by Nottingham Forest correspondent Paul Taylor
Anderson has simply been the best value signing that Nottingham Forest have made in the modern era. The £15m it effectively cost to sign him from Newcastle (with Vlachodimos a £20m makeweight in the deal) landed the club one of the brightest midfield talents of his generation.
He is not the only important figure — players like Morgan Gibbs-White, Murillo and Neco Williams are also integral — but he is unquestionably among the best to have pulled on the Garibaldi red in the Premier League.
Anderson came through the ranks at Newcastle but has become one of the Premier League’s top talents since joining Forest (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
And with his effortless and endless dynamism; his ability to win back the ball and get Forest moving forward and his constant quality in possession, he quickly won around the Forest faithful. His parting gift was to score the goal that ultimately kept them safe.
Forest have been resigned to the fact that they might have to allow him to move on to bigger things for some time, as long as the money involved was right.
Replacing him with a like-for-like talent will be almost impossible. But the club have been preparing for that eventuality.
Why is he so sought after?
Analysis by data and tactics writer Anantaajith Raghuraman
Anderson is emblematic of the modern Premier League midfielder.
He can progress play in multiple ways. His 2.8 take-ons per 90 ranked second among Premier League central and defensive midfielders (minimum 1,000 minutes) behind Tijjani Reijnders. Only three managed more passes into the opposition half than his 8.3 per 90.
Anderson took 14 per cent of Forest’s total Premier League touches in 2025-26, a higher share than any other player. The volume did not overwhelm him. He was press-resistant, often picked the right pass and was a threat in the final third, recording four goals and four assists.
Out of possession, Anderson offers tenacity and athleticism. He can push ahead and meet man-marking demands but also track back at pace to protect his defence. He blocked 1.4 opposition passes per 90, knowing when to pounce to cut out moves.
