Elliot Anderson will undergo a medical at Manchester City after England’s World Cup game against Panama this weekend, completing a club-record £116m move from Nottingham Forest that cements his rise from Tyneside schoolboy to Thomas Tuchel’s “full package”.
The 23-year-old midfielder, who scored a hat-trick as captain in a school tournament a decade ago, was sold by Newcastle for £30m in July 2024 because of profit and sustainability rules – a deal then-manager Eddie Howe called “the most reluctant in my career”. Now he is on the brink of becoming City’s most expensive signing, with Tuchel describing him as “the full package” and integral to England’s World Cup plans.
“Elliot Anderson nears a £116m Manchester City move after England's World Cup game, while Newcastle fear losing Sandro Tonali next.”
“His brothers were decent, but I think being the youngest of three he was used to getting bossed about,” said Jonathan Roys, Anderson’s former teacher at Valley Gardens Middle School. “He’d get stuck right in.” That tenacity took him from Wallsend Boys’ Club – where Alan Shearer and Peter Beardsley began – to a £116m valuation.
City’s spending may not stop there. Newcastle believe the Premier League champions will ramp up their pursuit of Sandro Tonali once the Anderson deal is sealed. The Italian midfielder, valued at £100m, has been tracked by City for more than a year and is aware of their interest, according to the Telegraph. Tottenham had an initial £75m bid rejected last week, and Tonali is open to moving to London or Manchester.
Newcastle have already sold Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for £70m and lost Alexander Isak last summer in a saga that disrupted their plans. They fear an exodus but are determined to keep captain Bruno Guimarães, who has mild interest from Arsenal but is “far less likely” to leave than Tonali, according to sources. The Brazilian would command at least £100m.
Meanwhile, Tuchel revealed Anderson is dealing with muscle tightness but Declan Rice has passed a fitness test and is available for Sunday’s match. The England head coach will hope his “full package” midfielder is ready to deliver on the World Cup stage before beginning a new chapter at the Etihad.