Manchester United have been a dealt a significant blow in the race for top target Elliot Anderson after David Ornstein gave an update on the situation.
Anderson has quickly grown into one of the top midfielders in the Premier League after a series of all-action displays for Nottingham Forest.
The former Newcastle man was rewarded for his form with Forest and displays in the European Under 21 Euros triumph with a first call-up to the England senior squad back in August.
The 23-year-old immediately made a huge impression and has been capped six times under Thomas Tuchel, who looks nailed on select him in his first-choice midfield pairing at the World Cup in North America next summer.
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United have earmarked him as the ideal candidate to strengthen their struggling midfield, with strong interest in Anderson.
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However, the £100 million-related midfielder is not believed to be pushing for a January departure away from Sean Dyche's side and according to David Ornstein of The Athletic, a move is extremely unlikely in the middle of the season.
"There will be enormous interest in Elliot Anderson, but it’s not going to happen in January," Ornstein explained on NBC Sports.
“First and foremost, Nottingham Forest don’t want to do anything at this point in time. They’ve got him under contract until 2029.
“The player is not agitating to move right now, and the fee they’re going to command is in the region of £80-£100m the way things are looking. I don’t think that’s very realistic from a PSR perspective even for the biggest clubs.
“Also in terms of squad and salary space, they’d have to get rid of some pretty significant players if they were going to free up space for someone like Anderson. That’s why I think the winter is not going to be a time for Anderson to move.”
Ornstein went on to reveal that in the summer, following on from a World Cup in which Anderson is set to play an important role, there could be quite the race for his signature.
But while United are high on Anderson and view him as priority signing, he is also being courted by Manchester City, Chelsea and Bayern Munich among others.
"However, the summer could be a completely different story," he added.
"There is no release clause in his contract, but I do think that Nottingham Forest know that if the right price comes in, they might have to do business.
“I don’t think we’re going to have a repeat of the Morgan Gibbs-White situation should suitable offers arrive.
“What about the interested clubs? It’s going to be the biggest clubs in the Premier League and Europe such as Manchester City, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and plenty of others.
“Some of them are already calling Nottingham Forest – Man Utd have made their interest known. I think he’s top of their list or there or thereabouts.”
Anderson will be in action on Saturday when Forest host City at the City Ground.
Topics: Manchester United, Premier League, Nottingham Forest
Josh Lawless