The Premier League is a hotbed of talent, and with the season drawing to a close, the transfer market is heating up. Transfer speculation is inevitable, and two players who have been in the spotlight are Elliot Anderson and Adam Wharton. Anderson, an England international midfielder, has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest, and his Old Trafford performance might change some minds about where he is best deployed. He was everywhere, in fairness, but his most crucial contributions were in the attacking third of the pitch, assisting both of Forest's goals. For each goal, he found a pocket of space on the right and delivered a pinpoint cross reminiscent of those Steven Gerrard produced so often when playing for Liverpool. Anderson's delivery for the first goal was close to perfection. Morato simply could not miss. This is a side of his game that we do not see enough. Anderson doubled his Premier League assists tally for the season in a single afternoon. He was, of course, excellent in all the areas he usually excels in as well. The 23-year-old ran the show for Forest. Anderson won more duels than anyone on the pitch (nine), won possession more than anyone else on the pitch (eight) and had more final third entries than anyone else on the pitch (14). He was simply head and shoulders above. That would have been hard to miss for United's hierarchy. Manchester City lead the race for Anderson's signature as it stands. They also tried to sign Rice before he joined Arsenal. United should move heaven and earth to bring Anderson to Old Trafford if they have ambitions of challenging again one day. Wharton, on the other hand, is more than a capable alternative to Anderson. Against Brentford, Wharton was doing everything right. His forward-thinking passing ability was creating chance after chance in a dominant half for the Eagles. But his off-the-ball work was noticed too, topping Palace players for ball recoveries in a breathless 100 minutes in west London. 'It is incredible how he reads the game and how far he is ahead of it,' said Oliver Glasner after the game. 'This is his biggest strength.' A lot has been made about Elliot Anderson ahead of a crucial summer - for England's World Cup and in the transfer market. But Wharton has shown he can easily be the star of the summer. As he did at Brentford, if he can add goals to his game he will be the perfect all-round midfielder. Whoever doesn't get Anderson knows there is a more than capable alternative in Wharton this summer. The Premier League is a hotbed of talent, and with the season drawing to a close, the transfer market is heating up. Transfer speculation is inevitable, and two players who have been in the spotlight are Elliot Anderson and Adam Wharton. Anderson, an England international midfielder, has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest, and his Old Trafford performance might change some minds about where he is best deployed. He was everywhere, in fairness, but his most crucial contributions were in the attacking third of the pitch, assisting both of Forest's goals. For each goal, he found a pocket of space on the right and delivered a pinpoint cross reminiscent of those Steven Gerrard produced so often when playing for Liverpool. Anderson's delivery for the first goal was close to perfection. Morato simply could not miss. This is a side of his game that we do not see enough. Anderson doubled his Premier League assists tally for the season in a single afternoon. He was, of course, excellent in all the areas he usually excels in as well. The 23-year-old ran the show for Forest. Anderson won more duels than anyone on the pitch (nine), won possession more than anyone else on the pitch (eight) and had more final third entries than anyone else on the pitch (14). He was simply head and shoulders above. That would have been hard to miss for United's hierarchy. Manchester City lead the race for Anderson's signature as it stands. They also tried to sign Rice before he joined Arsenal. United should move heaven and earth to bring Anderson to Old Trafford if they have ambitions of challenging again one day. Wharton, on the other hand, is more than a capable alternative to Anderson. Against Brentford, Wharton was doing everything right. His forward-thinking passing ability was creating chance after chance in a dominant half for the Eagles. But his off-the-ball work was noticed too, topping Palace players for ball recoveries in a breathless 100 minutes in west London. 'It is incredible how he reads the game and how far he is ahead of it,' said Oliver Glasner after the game. 'This is his biggest strength.' A lot has been made about Elliot Anderson ahead of a crucial summer - for England's World Cup and in the transfer market. But Wharton has shown he can easily be the star of the summer. As he did at Brentford, if he can add goals to his game he will be the perfect all-round midfielder. Whoever doesn't get Anderson knows there is a more than capable alternative in Wharton this summer.
