Manchester City have seen a second bid worth £122 million for Elliot Anderson rejected by Nottingham Forest, who are holding out for a British record transfer fee of £125 million before add-ons for the England midfielder.
City's offer, which follows an initial £80 million bid for the 23-year-old, comprises a guaranteed £106 million plus £16 million in potential add-ons. This would surpass the club's record £100 million paid to Aston Villa for Jack Grealish in August 2021.
The current British record is the £125 million Newcastle received from Liverpool for Alexander Isak last summer, a figure Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is understood to want for Anderson.
Manchester United have been keen to rival City for Anderson, but it remains to be seen whether Sir Jim Ratcliffe will authorise a bid at such a high fee, with United possibly ending their interest.
England manager Thomas Tuchel is expected to start Anderson in the opening World Cup match against Croatia on Wednesday. Tuchel wants any potential move to be handled smoothly to avoid disrupting England's campaign, which may have prompted City's director of football Hugo Viana to make the second bid eight days before the game.
With the offer rejected, Viana may now return with a third—and possibly final—bid by the end of the week.
