Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea are all involved in what promises to be one of the biggest transfer stories of 2026.
It is unlikely that this highly-coveted player will be on the move in January, but work is already going on behind the scenes as clubs like Man City position themselves as favourites for a summer deal.
This player is course, Elliot Anderson, whom Nottingham Forest expect to sell for £100M ($134.2M) or possibly more in the next few months amid strong interest from so many top clubs.
At the moment, sources in England keep bringing up four major names – City, United, Chelsea, and Bayern – but of course we can’t rule out other top clubs joining in at some point as well.
England manager Thomas Tuchel has described Anderson as one of the best midfielders in the Premier League this season, and it’s a widely held view among coaches and scouts across Europe.
Elliot Anderson’s transfer is inevitable but Man City are leading the charge
While it’s almost certain that Nottingham Forest will be selling Anderson one way or the other, Pep Guardiola’s side have now emerged as strong frontrunners for his signature.
The 23-year-old midfielder’s asking price might prove problematic for some teams like Chelsea, but that might make City the early favourites.
“City have been keen to do their work early on this deal,” one source said, speaking to CaughtOffside.
Although there is no final decision yet, multiple sources also suggested that Anderson was looking favourably on a move to the Etihad Stadium as the next step in his career.
As of now, initial contacts have already taken place between Elliot Anderson’s camp and Manchester City representatives.
Still, both Manchester United and Chelsea can’t be ruled out either. Bayern Munich are considered outsiders at the moment, but are also monitoring the situation in case Forest play hard-ball with their Premier League rivals and show a preference to selling their star abroad.
