Elliot Anderson is set to face his former club Newcastle United with Nottingham Forest on Wednesday evening.
The 21-year-old completed a £35million move from Newcastle to Nottingham Forest back in June as the club scrambled to comply with Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules. It was a move neither Anderson nor Howe wanted but one Newcastle ultimately needed in order to avoid a potential points deduction for breaching PSR.
The transfer saw goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos move in the opposite direction. The Greek international is already being linked with a potential move away from the club with five senior goalkeepers currently contracted.
Anderson came off the bench for Forest’s opening-day draw at home to AFC Bournemouth before starting the 1-0 win at Southampton over the weekend. The Geordie midfielder made 55 first-team appearances for Newcastle before his departure.
And when asked about Anderson’s involvement and the ‘difficult’ transfer to Forest, Howe responded: “Everything you said there is 100% correct.
“Watching the game in preparation for this was good to see Elliot play so well against Southampton, I thought he was excellent and contributed to their winning performance in midfield.
“He showed his versatility and I thought he did really well but it was tinged with sadness for me because we’ve lost an outstanding not just player but person as well from the group.
“We wish him well but of course, we’re competing against him for this game.”
After losing Anderson, Newcastle’s midfield will be boosted by the return of Sandro Tonali against Forest on Wednesday evening. The Italian has served his 10-month betting ban and is available for selection once again.
While Howe hasn’t made a decision on whether Tonali will start, he admitted there would be changes to the side that drew at Bournemouth on Sunday.
“We’ll try and play a really strong team,” Howe said. “We want to progress, we will make changes as well because we have a squad that enables me to do so while not weakening the quality.”
