Manchester United are confident they can beat Manchester City in the race to sign Elliot Anderson, the Nottingham Forest midfielder valued at around £100 million. The 23-year-old is expected to start for England in their World Cup opener against Croatia on 17 June, and City are considered favourites after tabling an initial £80m bid that was rejected by Forest.
United’s director of football, Jason Wilcox, is also tracking Mateus Fernandes as an alternative midfield option, though West Ham’s £80m valuation of the 21-year-old Portuguese is deemed unrealistic. The club has already agreed a €40.5m (£35m) deal with Atalanta for Brazil midfielder Éderson, who will earn approximately £70,000 per week at Old Trafford.
Anderson currently earns around £100,000 per week at Forest and can expect a 50% increase regardless of which Manchester club he joins. United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, keen to trim costs, is nevertheless prepared to meet those wage demands if the former Newcastle player opts for United. Anderson’s contract runs until June 2029, but he is widely expected to depart this summer.
Fernandes, who was not selected for Portugal’s World Cup squad, had his salary halved after West Ham’s relegation last month, making a move to United financially viable under Ratcliffe’s budget. Wilcox previously worked with Fernandes at Southampton before his move to West Ham, which was overseen by Kyle Macaulay, now United’s head of senior scouting.
United are also interested in Brighton’s Carlos Baleba, but the 22-year-old Cameroon midfielder is expected to remain at the south coast club. Meanwhile, Casemiro is set to join Inter Miami, though complications remain as LA Galaxy hold his discovery rights and Inter lack a free designated player slot to accommodate his wages. Club officials are confident these issues can be resolved.
