Elliot Anderson transfer agreement nears after Man City’s £121m bid rejected

Manchester City are close to agreeing the transfer of Elliot Anderson, talkSPORT understands.

Anderson is City’s top midfield target, and they saw two bids rejected before the World Cup, the highest of which totalled £121million.

England international Anderson has always favoured a move to the Etihad StadiumGetty

Although City’s latest offer of £106m plus £15m in add-ons was turned down by Forest, Anderson has made it clear he wants a move to the Etihad Stadium.

City are now in advanced talks with Forest over a deal closer to their British record asking price.

Elliot Anderson to Man City latest

City have held optimism since May that they can finalise a fee with Forest despite the high asking price.

Owner Evangelos Marinakis has been handling negotiations personally and kept others at the club in the dark, including manager Vitor Pereira.

Forest have been seeking a British transfer record fee, eclipsing the £125m Liverpool paid for Alexander Isak.

talkSPORT previously reported that it remains to be seen whether City go that high, but there is an expectation that the parties will come to an agreement after Anderson informed both City and Forest that he wants to join.

Although Thomas Tuchel is content for players to undergo medicals on international duty with England, talkSPORT understands Forest could delay formalisation on any deal until July, since it’s more preferable for the club to declare such a sale on the next financial year.

Meanwhile, Manchester United had viewed Anderson as a dream target but have moved on to other options.

United did want to enter into a bidding war without player buy-in.

They turned to West Ham’s Mateus Fernandes, but again face missing out on a deal.

Tuchel has revealed he wouldn’t stand in the way of Anderson completing a medicalGetty

Tottenham are in advanced talks with the Hammers seeking around £80m

The Red Devils United are already closing in on a deal to sign Atalanta’s Ederson, with a £38.8million move expected imminently.

As for Anderson, talkSPORT understands that another City bid could take place before England’s next game.

The 23-year-old has played the full 90 minutes in both of England’s opening Group L games.

He is likely to be in the starting XI when the Three Lions face Panama on Saturday.

Anderson’s future has been the main talking point of the summer window following a season in which he scored four goals and registered as many assists in 38 matches for Forest.

Anderson was hugely impressive against Luka Modric on his World Cup debutGetty

Anderson has enjoyed a meteoric rise since arriving at the City Ground from Newcastle in the summer of 2024 for a fee of £35m.

In fact, his arrival effectively went down as just £15m on the balance sheet, with Odysseas Vlachodimos also moving in the opposite direction for £20m so that Eddie Howe’s men could comply with PSR.

Only 30 months before that, Anderson was sealing a loan move from his boyhood Magpies to Bristol Rovers, who were 12th in League Two.

His expected triple-figure switch to the Etihad four years on is now thought to be linked to doubts over Rodri’s future.

City have already lost one key midfield star to the Bernabeu, with Bernardo Silva joining on a free transfer.