Manchester City have reached an agreement in principle with Nottingham Forest for Elliot Anderson, eSPORTY understands.
However, it is understood both clubs dispute the fee involved.
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City sources insist they are paying a fixed fee of £116million with no add-ons, but Forest maintain the total package is worth up to an eye-watering £130m.
That would mark a new British transfer record, surpassing the £125m Liverpool forked out last summer to prise Alexander Isak from Newcastle.
However, City argue it is a fixed fee below the £125m figure.
How Anderson’s record-breaking move came about
The major breakthrough comes after Forest had rejected two bids before the World Cup, the highest of which totalled £121m.
Owner Evangelos Marinakis handled negotiations personally and kept others at the club in the dark, including manager Vitor Pereira and Anderson’s agency.
Anderson was informed early in the week the move was likely to happen while on international duty after he respectfully informed Forest he wanted to join City.
Forest are now expected to declare the gargantuan fee on the new financial year.
As for who Forest are targeting to replace Anderson, it is understood wantaway Tottenham star Lucas Bergvall is viewed as a leading candidate to fill the imminent void.
The swoop represents a bitter blow for Manchester United who viewed Anderson as a dream target, but once it became apparent he had his heart set on a switch to City, the Red Devils quickly pivoted to other options.
United also did not want to enter a bidding war without player buy-in.
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They turned to West Ham’s Mateus Fernandes, but again face missing out on a deal.
Tottenham are in advanced talks with the Hammers seeking around £80m.
The Red Devils United are already closing in on a deal to sign Atalanta’s Ederson, with a £38.8million move expected imminently.
As for Anderson, the 23-year-old has played the full 90 minutes in both of England’s opening Group L games.
He is likely to be in the starting XI when the Three Lions face Panama on Saturday.
Anderson’s future has been the main talking point of the summer window following a season in which he scored four goals and registered as many assists in 38 matches for Forest.
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Anderson has enjoyed a meteoric rise since arriving at the City Ground from Newcastle in the summer of 2024 for a fee of £35m.
In fact, his arrival effectively went down as just £15m on the balance sheet, with Odysseas Vlachodimos also moving in the opposite direction for £20m so that Eddie Howe’s men could comply with PSR.
Only 30 months before that, Anderson was sealing a loan move from his boyhood Magpies to Bristol Rovers, who were 12th in League Two.
His expected triple-figure switch to the Etihad four years on is now thought to be linked to doubts over Rodri’s future.
City have already lost one key midfield star to the Bernabeu, with Bernardo Silva joining on a free transfer.
Quansah: Anderson will go ‘right to the top’
Although some across the football landscape will raise an eyebrow at City’s record-breaking outlay for Anderson, England defender Jarell Quansah believes it will prove to be money well spent.
“He’s got probably everything you want as a midfielder,” Quansah exclusively told eSPORTY’s Faye Carruthers.
“Hearing about him at Bristol Rovers, he was playing on the wing. Knowing he can do that and what he does in training sessions, he’s got a lot of attributes that are really good for the England squad and exactly what the manager wants.
Quansah added: “He’s a proper focused young lad and he’ll go right to the top, I think.”
