Nottingham Forest will drive a hard bargain for Elliot Anderson after Manchester City stepped up their interest in signing the midfielder.
City have had a long-standing interest in Anderson, who started England’s final pre-World Cup warm-up match against Costa Rica in Florida on Wednesday, amid reports they have tabled a British-record bid north of £100million.
But with Anderson under a lengthy contract and Forest not needing to sell, owner Evangelos Marinakis will not let one of his key men go on the cheap, especially with the potential for his price tag to increase if he has a successful World Cup with England.
Manchester United are also keen admirers but the price range looks beyond the Old Trafford club.
Anderson has emerged as a vital cog in Thomas Tuchel’s side for the tournament in North America, forming a strong midfield partnership with Declan Rice.
He was also an integral part of Forest’s Premier League survival bid and run to the Europa League semi-final, which came amid the backdrop of his mother Helen dying from a long illness.
England boss Tuchel indicated last week that he wants all of the players who may have summer moves to settle their business before next week’s Group L opener against Croatia.
Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon has already sealed a transfer to Barcelona, with Marcus Rashford and Morgan Rogers among those whose futures are up in the air.
