Man Utd to use ‘secret weapon’ to win Elliot Anderson race as Carrick demands a second £100m signing | OneFootball

Manchester United reportedly have a ‘secret weapon’ as they look to beat Manchester City in the race to sign Nottingham Forest star Elliot Anderson, while Michael Carrick wants another £100m-rated England international at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils have every right to be ambitious in their preparations for the summer window, after interim boss Carrick has put them in a very strong position to secure Champions League qualification.

Strengthening in midfield was always going to be the priority for Man Utd, and Anderson sits at the very top of their transfer shortlist.

Man Utd to use star to win Elliot Anderson race

Man City have been described as favourites to snare the supremely talented Anderson, but the race remains open, with Forest hoping for a bidding war and demanding around £100m for his signature.

Man Utd have no intention of making things easy for their noisy neighbours, and are pulling out all the stops as they look to bring in the 23-year-old.

According to reports, they have a ‘secret weapon’ as they intend to use Harry Maguire to try and convince Anderson to join them over the Cityzens.

They want Maguire to tap up Anderson and to secure his move to Old Trafford, as United players have done on previous occasions.

United have brought in England’s best player at international tournaments in the past, such as Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney, and they are aiming to repeat that trick with Anderson.

Fellow England stars Kobbie Mainoo and Luke Shaw could also urge Anderson to pick United over City.

The report adds that United will have the ‘financial health to outspend rivals’ this summer following the departures of players such as Casemiro, Jadon Sancho, Rasmus Hojlund, Marcus Rashford, Manuel Ugarte and Joshua Zirkzee.

This suggests United will indeed be able to launch a huge bid worth £100m or more for Anderson, to leave City trailing.

Carrick eyeing spectacular Morgan Rogers reunion

Meanwhile, TEAMtalk transfer insider, Graeme Bailey, revealed in an update earlier today that Carrick has urged INEOS to bring in Aston Villa superstar Morgan Rogers.

We understand Carrick has given a ‘glowing endorsement’ of the 23-year-old England star to director of football Jason Wilcox and wants him at Old Trafford next season.

Carrick – who is on course to take the Man Utd job on a permanent basis – knows Rogers well from their time together at Middlesbrough and has made it clear internally that he believes he would be a strong fit for his system.

Rogers signed a new long-term contract in November last year, and sources indicate that no release clause was included – leaving Villa fully in control of his future and valuation.

Villa’s current record sale remains the £100million departure of Jack Grealish to Manchester City in 2021, and insiders believe Rogers is now valued at a similar level.

A 20 per cent sell-on clause is also owed to former club Middlesbrough, which further inflates their asking price.

While Villa maintain they are not actively looking to sell, there is an awareness of financial pressures linked to UEFA regulations.

A major outgoing could ease those concerns heading into the summer window, even if it is not the preferred outcome.

Man Utd get another shot at signing Brazil star

In other news, Man Utd are long-term admirers of Atalanta and Brazil midfielder Ederson, and after failing previously with an approach for him, could get another chance to sign him.

The 26-year-old reportedly ‘turned down several clubs’ – one of which was Man Utd – when verbally agreeing personal terms with Atletico Madrid earlier this year.

Confirming that verbal agreement had been struck earlier in April, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano wrote on X: “Atletico Madrid have verbally agreed on personal terms with Ederson as Atalanta midfielder is a top target.

“No agreement yet between clubs as talks continue around €35/40m fee but still in negotiations. Ederson, out of contract in June 27.”

However, the latest reports from Spain suggest that Ederson’s prospective switch to Atletico is in serious doubt.

Atletico and Ederson are yet to turn their ‘verbal agreement’ into a formal one, and also, the Spanish giants are reluctant to match Atalanta’s price tag.

This could offer Man Utd an opportunity to step in and potentially hijack Atletico’s pursuit.