Man Utd 'well-positioned' for Elliot Anderson but there is a perfect alternative 'wanted' Premier League move
Manchester United have been linked with Elliot Anderson but there is an alternate option should the England international prove to be too difficult to sign.
Manchester United spent most of 2025 trying to get rid of players who Ruben Amorim didn’t want, or who had refused to buy into his philosophy.
The Red Devils boss has been backed with some big money signings in the shape of Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko but the club aren’t done backing their man just yet, according to transfer reports as the clock begins to tick down towards the window opening once again.
Several players have been linked already and it could be a busy window for Jason Wilcox and his team. There are areas all over the squad that need to be addressed which makes the narrow two-point gap to second place all the more impressive.
Manchester United eye Elliot Anderson move
Midfield has been a constant battle since Amorim took charge at Old Trafford with a variety of combinations being tried. The experienced duo of Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes would have been some paring in their day, however, Father Time waits for no man and forward planning is key to progress being made.
The current talk of the Premier League and England national side is Elliot Anderson who is now said to be on United’s radar with Fabrizio Romano hinting that a move could be on the cards via The Talk of the Devils podcast: “Elliot Anderson is the one who would be well-positioned at the moment for Man Utd. I’m choosing my words extremely carefully. I start to go through the team and right, that midfield is going to change in the next few years.”
Anderson is a quality operator capable of dictating the tempo of games, but having cost Nottingham Forest £40m, it is likely that his price tag could be approaching double this now given his current reputation and status. United could land an alternative option in a player who nearly moved to the Premier League in the summer and who could cost less than Anderson’s fee.
Who United could sign instead of Anderson
Joey Veerman signed for PSV Eindhoven from Heerenveen for a little over £6m but the Dutch giants rejected Brentford’s attempts to bring him to England with an offer of over £25m reported to be on the table.
The player was keen to move to the Premier League and it doesn’t look like any offer from United would be rejected.
“This train was coming along now, and I wanted to get on. PSV might have seen it that way, but they couldn’t find a replacement. It’s a real shame. It’s a decent amount; apparently, they don’t need it,” Veerman told NOS. “I said I was disappointed. They knew I wanted to transfer and that an offer could come.”
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Veerman also wasn’t too happy about how Brentford handled the bid, in particular, the timing of their offer: “If Brentford had come earlier, the deal would have been done. They waited too long. The clause in my contract expired two weeks before the deadline. I understand [PSV’s] position, and I can’t change the fact that they couldn’t find a suitable replacement.”
PSV are willing to sell Veerman so that they can reinvest in their team although with four goals and six assists in 10 Eredivisie games so far this season, will have been happy that they didn’t. As a long-term replacement for Fernandes, Veerman has the passing range, ability to score goals and vision that is needed to be a success in United’s engine room, and he wouldn’t break the bank.