Nottingham Forest Season Review - Central Midfielders

A look at how Forest's central midfielders performed this past season

Elliot Anderson

I think despite the trials and tribulations of this season, Forest fans will look back on it fondly purely because we all got to see Elliot Anderson really start to fulfil his incredible potential. It’s incredible to think that there’s probably more to come from him when he makes the move to team of higher quality.

After winning the U21 European Championship with England last summer, he progressed almost immediately to the senior side and as long as he avoids injury will be a definite starter at the World Cup later this month.

His defensive numbers are not only amongst the best in England, but also across all the top European leagues. He matches this defensive ability with an incredible range of passing, regularly bypassing midfield lines with passes to those further ahead than him on the pitch.

His big drop in form came in late March and early April, and it later transpired that his mother passed from a long-term illness. His response to this tragedy spoke volumes about the kind of person and player he is, and he finished the season with some key contributions that helped Forest retain their Premier League status.

Anderson didn’t miss a single game through injury this season, missing only 2 games officially, both through suspension. One of these came after a rare disappointing moment from him, where he received a straight red card for dissent toward the referee in a horrible night in Braga.

He played over 4,400 minutes for Forest in all competitions, and that doesn’t include his appearances for England. Last season it seemed like Forest had to manage Anderson during training to maintain his fitness, but we didn’t hear much about that in this campaign, a real sign that he’s been working on his fitness and recovery.

2026/27 Plans:

Unfortunately for Forest, it seems almost definite that he’ll be moving on this summer. The good thing is that he’s going to bring in a ridiculous sum of money, perhaps even a record for an English player. My hope is a good World Cup can potentially add another few million to the price tag before we see him move on. Wherever he goes, I’d expect an even greater attacking involvement as his supporting cast improves.

Ibrahim Sangare

It’s taken a while, but we’ve finally seen a real consistency (and availability) from Sangare this last season. Once he got settled into this season’s starting lineup, it’s fair to say Forest never really looked the same when he wasn’t around.

Defensively, he was incredibly strong. Only 2 midfielders in the Premier League blocked shots more often than he did, and when paired with Elliot Anderson they shared a formidable partnership.