The midfield trio that ran Manchester City through most of the past decade is gone. Rodri, De Bruyne and Silva have all left the club this summer, and the £116m spent on Anderson is what City are trying to build on top of what remains.
The fee was a British record when it was agreed in June. It held that status for less than three weeks before Chelsea signed Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers for £117m, pushing Anderson to second on the all-time list before he had even started training with his new club.
City’s identification of Anderson was a numbers exercise. In its season preview, analytics site The Analyst noted that of the midfielders on City’s list, Anderson’s output “profiled most closely with Rodri” and pointed to a possession-winning figure that stood out across the continent: 306 possession wins in the Premier League last season, more than 90 above the next-best figure in Europe’s top five leagues.
“Kings of Manchester”
Anderson, who joined Forest from Newcastle in 2024, described the move as a step to a different level.
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“I can’t wait to play for this club. It’s a club built to win trophies and compete at the very top of the game,” he said in comments carried by Sky Sports.
“For as long as I’ve known Manchester, City have been the kings of Manchester.”
Hugo Viana, City’s director of football, framed the signing in longer terms.
“Elliot is one of the outstanding young midfield talents in world football. We feel he can become a complete midfielder,” Viana said.
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The £116m is guaranteed with no add-ons, and Anderson can earn up to £300,000 a week if performance bonuses are triggered. His contract runs to June 2031 with an option for a further 12 months.
First home league game
Anderson’s first home Premier League appearance came in a 2-1 win over Bournemouth in late August. He operated in the double pivot, took the corner that nearly turned into a goal at the far post, and was substituted after 63 minutes with cramp.
Maresca, appointed as Pep Guardiola’s successor on 29 June on a three-year deal, has more midfield reshaping to do. Teenager Ayyoub Bouaddi, who impressed for Morocco at the summer’s World Cup, is reportedly the next arrival earmarked to join Anderson in the engine room.
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