Anderson was one of the main driving forces behind Nottingham Forest’s brilliant 2024-25 campaign as they finished seventh in the Premier League in their third season back in the top-flight, narrowly missing out on the Champions League while reaching the FA Cup semi-finals. But while the Tricky Trees’ results have nosedived amid the upheaval of having three separate coaches already this term, Anderson has continued to stand tall. Taller than every other midfielder in the Premier League, in fact.
Name every attribute you want a midfielder to have, and there is a good chance Anderson will lead the way in it. According to FBREF, he sits No.1 among Premier League midfielders in passes attempted, passes completed, progressive passes, passes into the final third, short passes attempted and completed.
He also has the highest passing distance among midfielders (and the fourth-highest in the league) and highest progressive passing distance of any midfielder. In that last category, he is ranked 20th in the league in a field dominated by goalkeepers. The closest midfielder to him is Fernandes in 30th, then Granit Xhaka at 45th while his England team-mate Declan Rice is 50th. Anderson has an accumulated progressive passing distance of 3844 metres, 447 more than Fernandes, 986 more than Xhaka and 1049 more than Rice.
In addition, he has more touches on the ball than any other midfielder, and the most ball recoveries.