‘Growing belief’ Man Utd ‘first-choice target’ will ‘snub’ INEOS for Man City ‘move’ | OneFootball

Elliot Anderson would snub the chance to move to Manchester United to join Manchester City, according to yet another source, as Red Devils’ co-owners, INEOS, face a tough task of convincing the Nottingham Forest midfielder to move to Old Trafford in 2026.

TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent, Fraser Fletcher, reported back in November 2025 that Man Utd had made Forest midfielder Anderson their main midfield target in 2026; a report subsequently backed up by The Athletic, who claimed on December 26: ‘In midfield, Elliot Anderson is United’s first-choice target.’

It is very unlikely that Forest will sell Anderson in the January transfer window, given that they need the former Newcastle United midfielder to help cement their place in the Premier League for next season.

However, a transfer away from the City Ground in the summer of 2026 is very much possible, with Man Utd’s city rivals, Manchester City, pressing ahead.

Fraser Fletcher reported on January 12 that Man City have made contact with Anderson’s camp and have informed them that they plan to formalise a bid for the Forest midfielder in the summer of 2026.

Furthermore, our transfer correspondent, Dean Jones, reported on January 16 that Anderson is ‘Man City’s next big target’, further fuelling claims a move to City is high on his agenda.

In a fresh update, the i Paper has now made a similar claim about Anderson, noting that he is very likely to snub the chance to move to Man Utd, who recently appointed Michael Carrick as their interim manager until the end of the season, to join Pep Guardiola’s Man City.

The reputable publication has reported that while Man Utd have the chance to sign Adam Wharton and Carlos Baleba from Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion, respectively, in the summer of 2026, ‘there is a growing belief Anderson would snub United for a move to rivals Manchester City’

Man Utd, though, are not going to find it easy to sign Wharton and/or Baleba in the summer of 2026 either.

While Fraser Fletcher has reported that Crystal Palace will sell Wharton at the end of the season, sources have told us that Tottenham and Liverpool have the England international midfielder on their radar as well.

Newcastle United and Aston Villa, too, are keeping tabs on the Palace midfielder, with the Spanish media claiming that Real Madrid are keen on Wharton as well.

Fraser Fletcher has also reported interest from Liverpool and Tottenham in Baleba.

Meanwhile, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has given his take on shock links between Chelsea attacking midfielder Cole Palmer and Manchester United.

And while it looks as though United do have one green light over a deal, two sizeable hurdles make a deal to bring Palmer to Old Trafford extremely problematic.