Elliot Anderson will become the most expensive British player in history after Manchester City agreed a £116m deal with Nottingham Forest for the midfielder – a fee that eclipses the £105m Arsenal paid for Declan Rice three years ago. City confirmed the agreement on Thursday, with the 23-year-old set to join after the World Cup. The transfer makes Anderson City's record signing, surpassing the £100m they paid for Jack Grealish, and continues Forest's extraordinary history in the market: in 1979 they bought Trevor Francis for £1m, the first British £1m player; now they bank a record fee for a player they signed from Newcastle for £35m just two years ago. Anderson's stats justify the price: no Premier League player had more touches (3,300), duels won (298), possessions won (306) or fouls won (80) last season. He also led central midfielders in passes (2,038) and line-breaking passes (376), covered 411km, and ranked second in high-intensity pressures.
Everton moved to strengthen their midfield by signing Hayden Hackney from Middlesbrough for at least £16m on a five-year deal. The 24-year-old, named Championship player of the season for 2025-26, helped Boro reach the play-off final in May, which they lost 1-0 to Hull City. “As soon as I spoke to the manager [David Moyes], as soon as I knew Everton were interested, to be honest, it was always going to be Everton,” Hackney said. “It’s such a big club, with the new stadium and the direction it’s going in. I just wanted to be part of that.” Moyes said: “Hayden is a promising young player who we’ve been tracking for some time. We’ve had a track record over the years of identifying players in the Championship who have gone on to do really well.” Hackney made 154 appearances for Middlesbrough, scoring 16 goals, and was part of England’s European Under-21 title win in 2025. Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest had also shown interest.
“Man City agree £116m for Anderson, Everton sign Hackney for £16m, Man United give record pro deal to 17-year-old Drury.”
Manchester United Women’s youngest ever player, Layla Drury, is set to become the youngest player to sign a professional contract with the WSL club. The 17-year-old forward made her senior debut in January in an FA Cup tie against Burnley, scoring in the 5-0 victory to become United’s youngest goalscorer. She made seven appearances in all competitions last season, five of them as a substitute in the WSL. Drury, who switched her international allegiance from Wales to England in February, will be the first player to sign a deal with United before her 18th birthday. Her debut at 16 years and 220 days broke the record previously held by Lauren James in 2018. The Wales-born youngster’s progress is seen as a success for United’s academy as the club aims to develop its own young players to build a sustainable women’s team.
Elsewhere, London City Lionesses announced the signing of Germany forward Nicole Anyomi on a four-year contract after her deal at Eintracht Frankfurt ended. Anyomi scored 60 times in 130 games for Frankfurt and was part of the Germany squad that reached the 2022 European Championship final, losing to England at Wembley. “I always wanted to play abroad and to have the offer from this club with their project means the world,” she said.