Manchester City are preparing an improved bid worth £120m guaranteed for Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson which, with add-ons, will become a British record transfer fee.
It will take the deal £130m and surpass Liverpool’s deal for Alexander Isak as the largest transfer fee ever paid for a player in British football.
According to TeamTalk, City’s opening proposal – £110m guaranteed plus £11m in add-ons – was rejected by Forest last week.
A revised offer is expected to be tabled imminently, and both clubs are now described as confident a deal can be concluded within days. Doctors are already on standby to conduct a medical in the United States, where Anderson is currently on international duty with England at the World Cup.
The Fee Structure – And Why Forest Are Holding Firm
The benchmark Forest are defending against is Liverpool’s £130m arrangement with Newcastle for Isak last summer – currently the British transfer record.
Evangelos Marinakis, the Forest owner who is personally leading negotiations, has made clear that a British-record guaranteed fee is non-negotiable, not merely a British-record total.
City’s first bid hit the right headline number on paper but front-loaded too little guaranteed cash for Forest’s liking.
The new expected bid of £120m guaranteed, with add-ons taking the ceiling above £130m, is designed to close that gap.
For context, Moisés Caicedo’s move to Chelsea for £115m set the Premier League midfield record in 2023, and Declan Rice’s £105m switch to Arsenal remains the British-player record. Anderson, at 23 and with two seasons of Premier League consistency at the City Ground behind him, is being valued significantly above both.
For Forest, the commercial logic is straightforward. They signed Anderson from Newcastle for £40m. A sale at the figures now being discussed would represent an £80m to £90m profit – a generational windfall for a club still navigating the demands of sustained top-flight competition.
Anderson’s Own Position
TeamTalk reports that Anderson has made his desire to join City explicit, and that his camp have been actively pressing Forest to facilitate the move over the past week.
Pep Guardiola’s departure in summer 2026 has not altered that stance. Personal terms are described as no obstacle.
Anderson has developed into a box-to-box midfielder of genuine Premier League quality – relentless pressing, ball-carrying, and an end-product that has made him one of Thomas Tuchel’s first-choice picks for England.
Reports from ESPN and The Athletic have framed City’s pursuit as a clear statement of intent to rebuild their midfield engine room under the new post-Guardiola structure led by sporting director Hugo Viana.
Manchester United had been linked earlier in the window but have effectively withdrawn as the numbers moved into record territory, per multiple reports.
Anderson Medical in Kansas – The Timeline
England are based at Swope Park in Kansas City between fixtures, and Tuchel’s staff are reportedly keen for the deal to be resolved quickly to remove any distraction from the squad.
If the clubs agree a fee before Tuesday’s match against Ghana in Boston, Anderson could complete his medical in the United States before England face Panama in New Jersey on Saturday.
City’s transfer activity this summer has been characterised by decisive escalation – the club recently tied Joško Gvardiol down to a new contract to block Real Madrid, a signal that Viana is willing to spend and commit to retain the squad’s core while rebuilding around it.
The Anderson pursuit fits that pattern: an ambitious, record-level outlay on a player at peak developmental age.
Forest, for their part, are not standing still. TeamTalk reports they are among the clubs pursuing Lucas Bergvall as one of two midfield replacements targeted this window – suggesting Forest consider the Anderson sale close enough to plan around it.
The deal is not done. But the direction of travel is clear: City are accelerating, Forest know their leverage, and Anderson wants the move. The fee is the last moving part – and City appear prepared to find it.
