Same. For all that CM is the first concern this summer, that LB position is a big enough problem that it could really sink us if not properly addressed. The fact you’ve got people telling us it’s fine and name checking Dalot (currently not even good enough in his correct position), Amass and Leon says it all. Shaw injury in September and we basically have a single underwhelming-quality player for each fb position for an entire season. Add an injury to Mazraoui or Dalot and we’re in emergency loan territory and then no matter how well we’ve recruited in other positions we can be beaten by any half switched on opposition manager with a decent winger to throw at us.
Elliot Anderson | City agree fee up to £130m
- Thread starter davidmichael
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Yep, I couldn’t agree more. I just made a very similar point in the Hall thread.
This is spot on. We are lacking in numbers but also in quality. Shaw isn't the player he was in his prime. Injuries have clearly taken a toll on him. His decline in acceleration is one thing, but notice his agility which seems completely gone. He's awfully stiff - about as agile as Maguire these days. It would be great if we can get an injury free season out of him again as he surprised me, and most others, last season. He was mostly solid if unspectacular. I think he would still be a very good option to have next season if we get someone else in. That being said, if we can actually sell him on for a transfer fee, Hall and arguably one more LB wouldn't go amiss. Amass and Leon do not look ready.
Too bad that this seems to be only a matter of agreeing on the price. Feels like Anderson could have bee a real difference maker for our midfield.
Even City will not buy their own posturing.
City and Forest know that there is no available midfielder who is better than Anderson.
The good news is that Marinakis is willing to keep Anderson if City do not meet his valuation. The bad news is that City owners are willing to give him ´sweeteners´under the table to get the deal done.
yer i see him being the next harry Kane style superstar
Hate to say it, but i think Steven Gerrard, minus the goals, but with a better range of passing.
Andersons a very good player but too soon to compare him to players like Gerrard, hes not near those levels yet.
Would have been interesting how he did under peps regimented play...as he likes wo wander with somewhat of a free role...its actually that which makes me wonder just how good hed actually be here, for sll his attrbutes bruno runs too much wandering out if shape defensively, mainoo doesnt really have the power in his legs defensively agsinst the break...as good as anderson has been and all the boxes he ticks...one thing not surw he solves and its one of our biggest problems for a long time, keeping shape and discipline not gettin over ran on the break...think he might actually add to it...dont want to see him at city as hes very good...but not sure £100m+ on him for us actually is ideal this window regardless
Silly boy being so keen to go there without Pep.
Both. Forrest want a brittish record fee.
We don’t want to overpay and we cant publicly lose to city. So we go for the next best midfielder we can get as close to his level as possible. That person has to be a starter, we need the Ederson types to provide competition and to cover injuries etc.. lots of games coming up.
Those players were not at Cole RVP level but we can only hope they will get close.
How much cheaper is Tonali going to be though? Reports suggesting Newcastle want c£90m and his wages will be steep too. Plus potential for a Caicedo-esque bidding war on one of these top midfielders this summer.
We should make an offer of £115 million just to mess with City
We should bid the max we are willing to pay for him. Then if rejected we should bid £120 million and then change our mind so that City have to pay that.
I used to do something similar to this in Football Manager. When City had a stupid bid excepted for the best regen in the game, I matched the offer and gave stupid wages so he rejected their contract and accepted mine. I kept delaying the transfer until the window closed and it deal fell through.
I love it £200 million but we break the fax machine again
Going in for Anderson and getting back Tonali is like a kid asking for a PS 5 for Christmas and getting a ColecoVision.
This is hyperbole at its highest order.
Too use your analogy, it's more like getting a Nintendo switch back....a cheaper, less impressive console, but one you'll get a lot of use out of, will have fun with and will definitely do a job whilst saving you a bucket load of cash for lots of other gadgets.
Spending £120m on a player would be alright with Fergie in charge. You’d know he’d get the best out of the player, even if they have to be persuaded to join us over someone else.
It feels very risky for the latest flavour of the transfer window these days, and it’s been shown to be a bad move too often.
It feels very risky for the latest flavour of the transfer window these days, and it’s been shown to be a bad move too often.
It’s definitely not a Switch. That’s a brilliant console.
It’s more like Tonali is akin to the betting shop consoles
I personally Tonali would be great. Everyone we get linked with gets written off here. Is he a massive upgrade on Ugarte? Much more energetic than Casemiro. Doesn’t score a lot but I’d take him and he’ll do well for us.
I haven't seen much of Tonali and I had to google that reference.As I mentioned in the Mateus Fernandes thread, my latest half-hearted "scouting mission" took me to the dizzying heights of Forest's 2-1 win over West Ham earlier in the season. In this match, I got a glimpse of both Anderson and his Portuguese midfield opponent. If you want to give a read of my thoughts on how Fernandes played in the same game, they're posted in the Fernandes thread. For now, here's what I thought of Elliot Anderson's performance:
- Unsurprisingly, his passing range was excellent. I've watched matches involving five of our reported midfield targets now - Ederson, Tchouameni, Tonali, Fernandes and Anderson himself. Of these, Anderson's passing has been the best I've seen. His technique is fantastic over both the shorter and longer passing ranges, and he's always showing for the ball which made him central to most of the good things Forest did with the ball. He's also great at disguising his passes - he played quite a few balls forward that caught me by surprise given their difficulty, and this had the desirable impact of also catching West Ham's defenders off guard. Whilst not as important for us right now given that we have Bruno in the team, it's also worth mentioning that his set pieces in this game were brilliant - in fact, both of Forest's goals came as a result of them.
- Anderson's also got a great engine. He's really mobile and looks to impose himself when his opponents have the ball as much as when his teammates do. He's also no slouch in the air - I noticed that he won a few aerial duels from West Ham goal kicks. Physicality is definitely another aspect where he had Mateus Fernandes beat.
- Whilst he's imposing when the opposition have the ball, I'd say from a defensive standpoint he's good rather than great. He did complete a lot of tackles and interceptions but one criticism I'd have is that I think he sometimes over-commits to challenges. There were a few points in the game where he rushed into a challenge and ended up bypassed by either a few passes or a dribble from a West Ham player, and he did end up giving away one or two fouls as a result of this.
- The other slight criticism I'd have of him is that I don't think he looked amazing when pressured by West Ham's players. I am perhaps being harsh here given that the player I was comparing him to in the game (Fernandes) was brilliant in this department but, whilst exceptional at picking a pass with space and time, Anderson gave the ball away quite a few times when pressured by a West Ham player. Of the five players I watched, Anderson actually seemed to me to be the weakest at protecting the ball under pressure (perhaps tied with Tonali), although it's worth saying that these are all based on single matches.
Why is this thread so active for a player who’s obviously not coming here? Hopium?
Pretty much. Genuinely can’t remember the last encouraging update.
*Laughs in FDJ*
The only chance Utd have is if the verdict on the 115 charges actually gets delivered and City get relegated or are docked 60 points next season.
It’s odd these are still being briefed; would have been the perfect time to bow out and keep schtum.
Been saying this for weeks now. For some reason we're apparently still in this and the brief continues to go out, that he's the top target. Normally if a deal is off, it get squashed much quicker and explicitly. Whatever is going on, he's the best midfielder we could get this summer.
Well it’s certainly past the stage of bemoaning price as the exit route is right there and if we’re persisting, we’re ignoring it.
Anderson himself has said Rooney was hero growing up so I wonder if he has some affinity toward us and is open to the move if we cough up the required funds.
Isn't this a case of just keeping your cards close to your chest?
For every negative, there's probably a positive and little harm in saying 'we like him and are interested' in a player that you are actually interested in. Especially if you're already in the market for his same position of midfield with Fernandes. Obviously, they're not in the same price range or perhaps even profile but it keeps everyone on their toes (buyers, sellers and players). Well, as far as how much media talk can influence anyways.
For every negative, there's probably a positive and little harm in saying 'we like him and are interested' in a player that you are actually interested in. Especially if you're already in the market for his same position of midfield with Fernandes. Obviously, they're not in the same price range or perhaps even profile but it keeps everyone on their toes (buyers, sellers and players). Well, as far as how much media talk can influence anyways.
Might be a case of Utd waiting to see what sort of offer from City do Forest accept. And then seeing if there's anyway we could match it.
Wouldnt see the point if he wants city
Why? If it's £125mil or £115mil what's the point? We need to strengthen in multiple positions this summer. We don't have the squad depth of a city or arsenal. We need more depth as we will be playing at least 20 more games next season and quite a few at 3 days a week.
True. But if we are genuinely interested, and Sully has been accurate the past year, and none of the Tier 1s have definitively said we've pulled out (although they all accept City is most likely), I think we must have some indication from his camp he would be open to coming here if a deal can be made.
Preferring City and only wanting City are two different things to be fair
We don't know what the actual amount would be. Sure this is what Forest are briefing but we see that every year with a selling club.
Neither does anyone genuinely know how much we are willing to spend. Last year every single journo from Mitten to Whitwell to Stone and Romano was saying after signing Mbeumo we won't be able to spend big and will need to make sales. Just a few weeks later we signed Sesko for big money and by all accounts would have even considered spending big for Baleba if we felt his valuation was realistic. Every journo then later said the original plan changed after SJR and the board meeting in Iceland. My point being no one exactly knows what we will be doing this summer for sure, apart from maybe Berrada and Wilcox and co, and on last year's evidence even that can change.
I'm not saying City won't get Anderson, but what we are telling our journos in terms of needing x number of players and having y budget isn't necessarily the complete truth.
I've accepted that he's joining City, but can't we just mess with them a little bit, tell Forest that we are prepared to pay £120m for him? Increase the price, force City to pay more. Make it harder for them, not just giving them a free run at Anderson.
Liverpool did that with Caicedo a couple of years ago and forced Chelsea to pay something like £110-115m.
Liverpool did that with Caicedo a couple of years ago and forced Chelsea to pay something like £110-115m.
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