Maresca appointment and Anderson signing both stalled as City's summer frustration grows

Manchester City’s summer is on hold at both ends of the business. The club have yet to formally confirm Enzo Maresca as their next manager, and their pursuit of Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson has hit a second consecutive rejection, with no deal expected to be finalised until after the World Cup.

Maresca remains the intended appointment, and City sources suggest there are no late-breaking complications — but talks between the club and Chelsea, where Maresca was previously employed, have dragged on considerably longer than anticipated. The Blues are pressing to conclude the process as quickly as possible.

The Anderson situation is similarly protracted. City have had two bids for the 23-year-old England international turned down by Forest, and while there is still a belief internally that a fee can eventually be agreed, the timing has become a significant obstacle. England’s World Cup campaign begins on Wednesday, and with Thomas Tuchel’s squad potentially playing eight games across five weeks, the Three Lions manager has made clear he wants transfer business kept away from camp during the tournament. That effectively rules out any announcement in the near term, even if the two clubs were to reach an agreement on a fee.

City had initially hoped to wrap up the Anderson deal before the World Cup began. That window has now closed, meaning the move — should it happen — will not be confirmed until the tournament concludes. The travel demands of the competition and Tuchel’s preference for a clean camp environment further reduce the chances of any early resolution.

With both the managerial appointment and their primary transfer target in limbo, City face an unusually uncertain start to what is expected to be a busy summer. The club are also planning a summer tour of Asia and anticipate significant movement — both incomings and outgoings — once the pieces begin to fall into place.