Nottingham Forest fans have hailed Elliot Anderson as the 'Geordie Maradona' ever since his surprise move from Newcastle United, but few expected him to become one of the Premier League's most sought-after talents. Anderson's controversial transfer two years ago was one of several deals between the two clubs aimed at complying with financial regulations, yet nobody anticipated the monumental impact he would have. The prodigious talent quickly shone through, and his rapid ascent remains remarkable.
Less than a year after representing England in the U21 European Championship, the young star is already considered a certainty for Thomas Tuchel's starting lineup at this summer's World Cup. Only two of his teammates from last year's tournament have made the senior squad. His form has attracted interest from both Manchester United and their bitter rivals Manchester City.
Remarkable Rise Amid Challenges
The fact that all this is taken for granted demonstrates what an extraordinary footballer Anderson has become during an incredibly challenging year. Fighting off relegation and reaching a Europa League semifinal under four different managers is more unusual than most footballers ever experience. Even these feats pale in comparison to the heartbreaking loss of his mother in May.
Despite the challenges, Anderson has remained unflappable throughout a year in which he has played in various positions and emerged as one of the Premier League's standout performers. City are the frontrunners to secure his signature this summer, but the transfer fee is expected to be among the highest ever seen in the top flight, and they will face tough competition from local rivals United, reports the Manchester Evening News. United, however, are confident they can beat their local rivals to his signature.
Praise from Experts
"I think he has improved in a lot of different ways," shared Matt Davies, presenter of the Forest Focus podcast. "If you go back to the start of the season, we had so much turmoil with managers, but he was playing a deeper role under Nuno [Espirito Santo]. Ange Postecoglou came in and got him on the ball dictating play. Then [Sean] Dyche took over and bypassed him, wasting his talent. It was incredibly frustrating."
"But despite all that, Anderson was performing well in terms of winning duels, regaining possession, retaining the ball, handling pressure – all the attributes you would associate with a City player. I would say he excels at them. You can pass to him in any situation, he will recover it high up the field, he is courageous, athletic, and does not get pushed off the ball even though he is not the largest. Physically, he is extremely good."
"Then [Vitor] Pereira came in, and he really thrived in two areas. He played him a bit higher and got him to be braver and get into the box more. He scored a really good goal against City from outside the box. His creativity came to the fore more and more in the final weeks of the season, and he took on more attacking responsibility."
Leadership and Resilience
"The other thing he has really taken a big leap on, probably since getting into the England team, is his overall leadership and managing in midfield, which is partly why I think he could be the long-term Rodri successor. I said this back in October, November, when he was dominating midfields defensively. But now you watch games and he is marshalling players, stopping the ball, telling players where to be. There is a goal we scored against Chelsea away, where he tells Dilane Bakwa to move into an area. They play like a wall pass, and Anderson knocks it for Gibbs-White into the space that Bakwa vacated, which Anderson had told him to."
"So he has that in-game intelligence, confidence, and leadership. It became his midfield by the end of the season. It was Gibbs-White's team, but Anderson took on more and more responsibility. He showed incredible resilience as well with his mother passing; he came back into the team after one game and was fantastic. He scored a couple of goals and finished the season brilliantly, so I cannot speak highly enough of him."
Transfer Speculation
Forest are well aware of their asset's worth and find themselves in a much stronger bargaining position given how they concluded the campaign. They are under no obligation to sell, though they have recognized that Anderson could depart for the majority of the season. City are not the only suitors chasing the 23-year-old, with United believed to be their primary rivals. Forest can point to the £105 million that Declan Rice cost Arsenal three years ago as a benchmark for Anderson to establish a new record as the most expensive British player in Premier League history.
The player could simplify matters for City by making his intentions clear to Forest, even without submitting an official transfer request. James McAtee is among his closest friends in football, and he could seek guidance from John Stones, James Trafford, Nico O'Reilly, and Marc Guehi at the World Cup if he requires further insight into what the Etihad can offer him; though the two winners' medals from this season will have spoken volumes already.
As far as City are concerned, they need to ensure their signings will gel well in the dressing room alongside fitting into the manager's system. Their scouting department have not had to look far to witness how beloved Anderson has become at Forest. "I think you saw that with what happened with his mother and Neco Williams walking onto the pitch with him and bringing out the wreath," Davies said. "Gibbs-White did this interview after we had just beaten Porto in the Europa League – that was the game Elliot missed – and his voice was cracking."
"But you could see even before that how popular he was. Forest fans have been chanting 'Geordie Maradona' since his first season here. Everyone took to him because when he signed we thought we were signing a guy who could play left wing, a bit of number 10, a bit of midfield. Initially he was reported as £35 million which we thought was steep but then it was a slightly funky PSR deal involving our third choice keeper and we got him for a steal."
"We did not know what we were getting so that maybe gave him a good launch pad because he was fantastic from the start playing in this central midfield role, but he is just growing more and more. I think two years at Forest has given him that maturity and Premier League experience to step up. I am sure he would benefit from another year at Forest and he would keep progressing. But I guess there comes a time in a player's career where it is very hard to stop the transfer happening, and I think it might be now, sadly, when it comes to City."
