Elliot Anderson is going to be a man in demand this week and the Nottingham Forest midfielder is a top target for Man Utd during the summer transfer window.

Elliot Anderson can probably start house hunting around the leafy footballer suburbs of Cheshire. It looks certain he will be playing his football in Manchester next season, it’s just not yet clear who that will be for.

The 23-year-old is in the rare position of looking like he will have his pick of whether to sign for Manchester United or Manchester City, which would cap a meteoric rise for Anderson, who will be integral to England’s chances of success in the World Cup this summer.

The former Newcastle midfielder is focused on a relegation battle with Nottingham Forest at the moment, but at some point his attention will turn to his next month, and it is clear his time has come to step up to the elite level this summer.

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United would love to sign Anderson as they search for a No. 6 to replace Casemiro. He fits the profile of the player United want in their midfield, offering defensive protection with a high-quality level of passing and control.

He might wear the No. 8 shirt at the City Ground, but Anderson has operated deeper with England, allowing Declan Rice to get forward more, and he could dovetail well with Kobbie Mainoo. He is also the ideal age for a United signing in the Ineos era and Premier League-proven.

If Anderson indicated a willingness to move to Old Trafford, then United would likely make it happen. They are monitoring a range of midfielders ahead of a summer overhaul, with two new signings likely, but it is understood Anderson would be the ideal signing.

The spanner in the works is that Anderson is also someone that City have looked at, as they continue to reshape Pep Guardiola’s squad at the Etihad. The Blues signed Nico Gonzalez, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki over the last 18 months, but captain Bernardo Silva looks likely to leave this summer and there is now uncertainty over Rodri’s future.

The Spain international is starting to show signs of his best form again as he recovers from a serious knee injury, but his flirtation with Real Madrid continued last week, opening the door to a move to the Bernabeu with comments while away on international duty.

The 29-year-old said “you can’t turn down the best clubs in the world” when he discussed the possibility of playing for Real, having also worn the red and white of Atletico Madrid, and it isn’t the first time he has suggested he would like to play for them at some point in his career.

Rodri has a year left on his City contract at the end of this season and said he “needs to sit down and talk with City”, but also said he would “like to come back” to Spain one day. Whether it is this summer or next, it now looks increasingly likely that the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner is in the final throes of his Etihad career.

The prospect of losing the player who has been the Premier League’s best holding midfielder of recent years is going to force City back into the transfer market and it could well make Anderson an even more appealing prospect for them.

That will give Anderson a decision to make this summer. The future of Pep Guardiola might also be something that could come into the thinking, with uncertainty over whether the City manager will see out the final year of his contract, although it’s also unclear who will be in the dugout at Old Trafford next season.

United have sharpened up their act in recruitment recently, and they will be confident of matching the kind of slick presentation that City will be able to deliver, detailing why they want Anderson, how they see his role in the team and the trajectory the club is on, all things which could be crucial if this comes down to a straight head-to-head between red and blue in Manchester.