Elliot Anderson left for Nottingham Forest last summer, but could he return to Newcastle United?

Bolstering the midfield has been identified as a top priority for Newcastle United under new director of football Ross Wilson, but could the familiar face of Elliot Anderson be the solution?

Anderson left St. James’ Park to join Nottingham Forest for £35million last summer, when Wilson was in charge of affairs at the City Ground. The midfielder has since established himself as one of the best in the Premier League, helping guide Forest into the Europa League and earning his first four senior England caps – looking set to earn a place in Thomas Tuchel’s squad for next summer’s World Cup.

Forest’s deal for Anderson was sweetened by the fact that Newcastle paid £20m for backup goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos, meaning the Tricky Trees effectively paid just £15m for his services. Now, they could be set to land a huge profit.

Newcastle ‘investigating’ Elliot Anderson re-signing

Wilson declared he was ‘delighted’ when Anderson arrived at the City Ground last summer. However, roles have now reversed, with the 41-year-old in charge of transfer dealings at St. James’ Park. So, could Wilson mastermind a deal to bring Anderson back to his boyhood club? According to the i Paper, that is a very real possibility, with Newcastle understood to be actively ‘investigating’ re-signing the midfielder.

Of course, there is great mutual respect between the clubs thanks to the Anderson and Vlachodimos moves last summer, alongside Newcastle paying £55m for Anthony Elanga in the most recent transfer window. Alongside the possibility of re-signing Anderson, Newcastle reportedly agreed a secret 12-month extension to Sandro Tonali’s contract during his ban, offering further midfield security.

Eddie Howe addresses Elliot Anderson’s potential Newcastle return

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe recently admitted that he’d ‘love’ to welcome Anderson back into his squad, should the opportunity arise.

“Certainly, from my perspective, I would love him too,” he said ahead of Newcastle’s 2-0 win over Forest this month. “I’m very respectful of the fact he is at another football club and I would never normally talk about a player in that way, so, I won’t change that stance but it is very regretful a player from the academy who had given so much, and the club had given so much too, the coaching staff, all those years here and how people tried to develop those talents, for him not to be utilised here is a real shame.”

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Howe added: “We knew that [Anderson was a bargain for Forest]. We knew that the minute it was going to happen, and likely to happen, that we were massively selling him a big discount. “But the position we were in, we weren’t in a very strong negotiating position at all. And it was that or a points deduction. So I said many times we had no choice but to make the sale, but it was not one we wanted to do.”

Newcastle fans would surely welcome the Whitley Bay-born star back with open arms, especially considering the upward trajectory his career has taken since leaving the North East.