Revealed: How Curtis Jones' Inter move depends on Man City signing Elliot Anderson as Liverpool midfielder waits on transfer dominoes to fall

The £130m trigger for the deal

The key to Inter's summer transfer activity may reside in the hands of City and Forest. At the centre of this complex web is Elliot Anderson, the 23-year-old Forest midfielder who has become the subject of a massive bidding war. Currently representing England under Thomas Tuchel at the World Cup, Anderson’s value has skyrocketed following a standout season in the Premier League.

City are leading the charge for his signature, though they have recently seen a £120 million bid rejected by Forest. Forest are holding out for a British record fee and should City bridge the gap, the resulting windfall for Forest would set off a chain reaction across the continent.

Frattesi out to make room

If City complete the blockbuster signing of Anderson, Forest will immediately look to the Serie A market to find a replacement, Gazzetta dello Sport reports. The Premier League side has maintained a long-term interest in Davide Frattesi, and the influx of cash from the City deal would provide them with the necessary funds to meet Inter's valuation. While Inter currently value the Italian international at €30m, Forest’s previous hesitation has been purely financial.

For Inter, the departure of Frattesi is the essential sacrifice required to balance the books and fund their own priority targets. Removing Frattesi’s wages and generating a significant transfer fee allows the Nerazzurri directors, Piero Ausilio and Giuseppe Marotta, to return to the negotiating table with Liverpool for their primary objective in midfield.

Closing the gap with Liverpool

Jones has remained a top target for Inter, but negotiations with Liverpool have progressed slowly due to a valuation gap. The Italian giants recently saw an offer of €20m rebuffed by the Anfield hierarchy, who are holding out for a fee in the region of €30m. Liverpool are also reportedly insistent on including a significant sell-on clause in any deal for the academy graduate, who has spent his entire career on Merseyside.

The funds generated from Frattesi’s move to the City Ground would allow Inter to match Liverpool's €30m asking price exactly. With the player reportedly open to a fresh challenge in Italy and the chance to play Champions League football in Milan, the technical details of the deal - specifically the percentage of a future resale - remain the final hurdle once the cash is secured.

One-club man Jones targets move to dominant Italian side

Jones enjoyed a prominent role in Liverpool's 2025–26 season, making 49 appearances across all competitions while scoring three goals and providing three assists. Jones has spent his entire career at Anfield, having joined the club's academy at just nine years old before making his senior competitive debut for the Reds in 2019.

Should the transfer materialise, the midfielder will join a side that comprehensively dominated Italian football last season, capping off a spectacular domestic campaign by capturing both the Serie A title and the Coppa Italia.