Mason Mount shows his worth, Oliver Glasner makes no excuses and Chelsea find a new defensive duo
Elliot Anderson spent much of Nottingham Forest’s 2-0 defeat on Tyneside reminding Eddie Howe how much he lost when Premier League spending rules demanded that the midfielder be sold to fend off the threat of a points deduction. That was back in the summer of 2024 and Anderson, now an England international, has rarely looked back since joining Forest. For much of the first half he eclipsed even Sandro Tonali and, overall, was comfortably Ange Postecoglou’s best player. Yet Anderson is human and when his loose pass offered Bruno Guimarães an opening, his subsequent attempt at a recovery tackle was mistimed and sent Guimarães crashing in the area. The Brazilian had already shot Newcastle ahead from 25 yards and from the spot Nick Woltemade scored his fourth goal in five starts. Tellingly, at the final whistle both Postecoglou and Howe made concerted efforts to console Anderson. If Forest’s manager is to survive and then thrive at Forest he will inevitably be heavily dependent on Anderson’s talent. Howe, meanwhile, would love to buy the Newcastle academy graduate back. Should Forest, with or without Postecoglou, continue to founder Newcastle may yet be in with a chance. Louise Taylor
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