Anderson Confirms City Move, Shuts Down United Rumors
Anderson has drawn a firm blue line through the rumours: he was never close to joining Manchester United.
The England midfielder, City’s marquee summer arrival, admitted United players did try to tempt him across town during the off-season, but said his mind was already made up. Speaking at a fan event at the City club store on Wednesday, he addressed the long-running story that United had made him their top target before City closed the deal.
Asked directly about reports of a charm offensive from United’s dressing room while he was on holiday, Anderson didn’t dodge the question.
"I was just golfing in Portugal and bumped into a few and had a nice chat and stuff like that, but I had a decision to make and I chose City," he said.
So yes, the conversations happened. No, there was never a tug-of-war in his head.
The 21-year-old has wasted little time spelling out where his loyalties lie after his high-profile move to the Etihad Stadium. United’s interest was real enough, but Anderson’s own story meant there was only one club that truly pulled at him once he decided to leave his former side.
"I've seen a few things. It was blown out of proportion," he insisted. "I was probably eight or nine when [Sergio] Aguero scored that goal. I've been watching City for the past 10 years. You've got a big decision to make – and I’m confident I've made the right one."
That Aguero moment, the title-clinching strike that defined a generation of City supporters, is the backdrop to Anderson’s choice. He didn’t grow up neutral. He grew up watching that team, that era, that sky-blue surge.
For him, this transfer is not just a step up the ladder. It is a move into the world he studied as a kid.
At the heart of that world stood Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian has shaped the modern role of the creative midfielder, and Anderson made it clear just how deeply that influence runs.
"De Bruyne was always the player I looked up to over the last 10 years," he revealed. "I loved watching him. To be here at the same club and playing where he played is special."
The admiration is not casual. Anderson spent his formative years poring over De Bruyne’s movement, his passing angles, the way he dictated games from midfield. Now he walks into the same training ground, the same dressing room culture, expected to write the next chapter.
His first competitive step in City colours will come quickly. On Sunday, he is set for a debut in the Community Shield against Arsenal at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, a high-profile curtain-raiser for a season of heavy expectation.
He will do it wearing number five.
It is a number with weight at City, previously on the back of John Stones, and Anderson admitted the connection with his international teammate helped shape that choice.
"I had a few numbers to choose from and obviously Stonesy was the last number five and he was really good with me in the summer and I thought it would be a great touch to take that," he said.
A boy who watched Aguero, a midfielder who studied De Bruyne, now stepping out in Stones’ old shirt. Anderson hasn’t just joined City; he has walked straight into the lineage he grew up admiring. The question now is simple: how quickly can he turn that childhood vision into his own legacy?
