LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - Elliot Anderson says his rise from youth player at one of Tyneside's renowned boys' clubs to become England's most expensive transfer at the time of his move to Manchester City has been steeper than he expected, but says the best is yet to come.
England midfielder Anderson, whose signing on a five-year deal from Nottingham Forest was made official on Thursday, cost City a reported £116 million ($154.58 million) although Chelsea subsequently paid a little more for Aston Villa midfielder Morgan Rogers.
The 23-year-old will join up with City after a three-week break following the World Cup in which he started seven of England's eight games.
"I guess it's happened quite quick, but I think I always believed that I could get to this point and this is where I want to be," Anderson, City's record signing, said in a club statement.
"Now that I'm here, I'll keep pushing and try to take this club forward. I'm only 23, so I've got plenty of time to get to my best levels and I definitely think I'm not there yet and there's more to come from me."
Anderson followed the path of several England greats at Wallsend Boys Club which is where the likes of former Newcastle United and England striker Alan Shearer and midfielder Peter Beardsley also began their journeys.
He passed through Newcastle's youth ranks and had a spell on loan at Bristol Rovers before establishing himself in the first team. He subsequently moved to Forest for £35 million in 2024, going on to make 92 appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals and providing 11 assists.
All-action midfielder Anderson was the highest-ranking English player in terms of ball carries in last year's Premier League and completed the most passes in the final third.
RANGE OF ATTRIBUTES
He says he will bring a range of attributes to City where he will bolster a midfield already boasting the likes of Spain's World Cup-winning captain Rodri, Nico Gonzalez, Mateo Kovacic, Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden.
"I think I bring a bit of everything. I bring quality, I bring physicality, energy. I'd like to think I'd get (the fans) excited, get them off their feet and bring energy to the team," he said. "I like to be intense when I play and use lots of energy around the pitch and get the fans going."
Anderson's arrival coincides with the beginning of a new era for City following the departure of manager Pep Guardiola after a trophy-laden decade in charge.
Enzo Maresca, his replacement, has big boots to fill, but Anderson has been impressed with the former Leicester City and Chelsea manager's style of football.
"I'm really looking forward to that. I've watched his teams over the past couple of years and spoke to a few of the lads from Chelsea and they all rate him very highly," he said.
"So, I'm really looking forward to getting to work with him."
While England's World Cup dream ultimately fell short in a semi-final defeat by Argentina, Anderson said he was happy with his performances.
"It was disappointing, but I loved it personally. As a team I think we had the whole country behind us and we've done so well but just fell short," he said.
"But from a personal point of view, I enjoyed it and I thought I'd done pretty well."
On why he opted for City, Anderson said: "I think they're winners, they're relentless, and that's the sort of team I want to be a part of -- champions and people who win trophies.
"Over the last 10, 12 years, they've dominated."
($1 = 0.7504 pounds)
(Reporting by Martyn HermanEditing by Toby Davis)
