The midfield revamp battle is heating up for Manchester United, and there are two protagonists- Sandro Tonali and Elliot Anderson.
Manchester United had identified Elliot Anderson as a priority target early, and he fits perfectly into the club’s vision.
However, City’s interest complicated matters, and a pivot to Sandro Tonali has gained pace in recent days.
Fabrizio Romano has now cut through the noise and wrapped up all the developments in one update to provide clarity to the situation.
Elliot Anderson by corner flag in Nottingham Forest kit.
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Man Utd’s latest on Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali
The effects of the midfield market being so enticing are that multiple clubs feel the same, so the competition is bound to be tougher.
United have already seen as much with Bayern Munich entering the Anderson sweepstakes, and City monitoring both Anderson and Tonali.
The club can’t afford to miss out on both, and it looks like United have decided which is the more winnable battle right now.
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Romano, speaking on his YouTube channel, said that United have pushed Tonali “very high” on their midfield shortlist.
The player is open to the move, which is giving encouragement at Old Trafford, because the same can’t be said for Anderson.
The Forest midfielder is closer to City than to United, with the Manchester rivals holding “very serious” interest in the English midfielder.
To complicate matters further, Arsenal are also keeping tabs on Tonali along with City, so United could face the prospect of losing out on Anderson to City and getting in a bidding war for Tonali unless he follows Bryan Mbeumo’s lead.
Man Utd must secure one midfielder before pre-season
The situation is not ideal for United, but they would have been prepared for this bidding war before entering the market.
IF Elliot Anderson signs for Man City, who would be your TOP PRIORITY midfield alternative?
Elliot Anderson knee slide for Nottingham Forest.
Photo by Lee Parker – CameraSport via Getty Images
The saving grace is that United look likely to qualify for the Champions League, which will at least allow them to sell the project better.
In either case, they need to secure at least one midfielder before pre-season, a matter further complicated because there’s no clarity on the managerial situation.
It would be in the club’s best interests to give clarity to the transfer targets right now, even if they can’t announce it publicly, because it is handicapping the club right now.
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