Newcastle Insider Pours Cold Watern on Potential Magpie Return to Tyneside

Craig Hope has poured cold water on talk of Newcastle United executing a reunion with Elliot Anderson, reporting for the Daily Mail’s Newcastle Confidential that the chances are “fairly low” despite clear admiration from both Eddie Howe and sporting director Ross Wilson.

Hope wrote that Howe “never wanted to sell Anderson” and that Wilson himself helped bring the midfielder to Nottingham Forest in 2024 for “what was, in effect, just £15million.” But any return now appears remote because of cost and competition.

Hope stated directly that “it would take a fee of around six times that to sign him now,” noting Newcastle’s position under PSR and their £69m transfer record.

“That is not where Newcastle are at right now,” Hope wrote.

Hope added that Anderson’s next move is likely to involve some of the biggest clubs in Europe, which naturally shifts the landscape further away from Newcastle.

Added Hope: “My instinct is that one of, if not both, the Manchester clubs will make a serious play for him. Don’t be surprised to see interest from Spain, either.”

While Hope stressed that Anderson’s “heart would bring him back to Newcastle in a beat,” the reality is that a 23-year-old England international entering his peak years will prioritise joining a team already competing for league and European titles.

Hope concluded that “despite there being a chance,” he would expect Anderson’s next destination after Forest “to be elsewhere.”