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Newcastle's forced £35 million transfer labelled a shambles as Premier League criticised

Newcastle's forced £35 million transfer labelled a shambles as Premier League criticised

Elliot Anderson's journey to Nottingham Forest has been labelled a 'shambles' after Newcastle United were forced to sell the midfielder to avoid a points deduction as a consequence of the profit and sustainability rules.

Toon boss Eddie Howe reluctantly let Anderson join the East Midlands side in the summer for £35 million. The 22-year-old has excelled at the City Ground but even the Forest fans who have been left impressed have hit out at the situation which forced The Magpies to sell.

Speaking on The View from the Opposition via The Everything is Black and White Podcast, Matt Davies of Forest Focus conceded that the current financial rules are 'not good for football.'

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"I've got an idea what the final net spend on Elliot Anderson was, but he's worth way more than what we signed him for already and it's only November, so I can see why it stings for you guys.

"Tongue in cheek, we are massively grateful to Newcastle, but the PSR shambles that we saw over the summer, we were having to do some funky deals ourselves. We sold two players to Lyon, Moussa Niakhaté and Orel Mangala for insane money. I think that we got a net of £55 million for them.

"I think Lyon just overpaid but we were very fortunate for that, and you see Villa and Chelsea doing a few deals too and it's not good for the game. I know Newcastle have so much resources that they couldn't spend, so they have to sell two good players.

"I really like [Yankuba] Minteh as well, who was another player that we were interested in. So yeah, we came out of it on the right side this time but if we're in this situation again, then we might not do.

"So I don't think it's good for football, certainly.”

Anderson has yet to score for Forest but has still caught the eye with his performances - providing three assists for Forest this season. Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the trip to Nottingham Forest, Howe spoke about the midfielder.

"For us we loved Elliot. He was slightly different again whichever position you look at. As a midfielder or a winger he is slightly different. One of the things we really liked was his adaptability to play in different positions.

"And also to use those qualities from an attacking perspective. We used him at the back end of last season in key games and he did brilliant in defensive roles for us. This enabled us to play in different ways in different games so he was adaptable, and technically excellent but he will be a regular goalscorer in the Premier League in the future."

You can listen to the full episode of The View from the Opposition by clicking here or if you'd prefer to watch it via YouTube, click here. You can get in touch with the podcast by emailing theeibwpodcast@reachplc.com.