One of the biggest stories in soccer this month, (other than the World Cup of course) is the commitment two high profile teams in the English Premier League are showing toward two English born midfielders. According to Sam Tighe of ESPN, two transfer fees have been finalized. Manchester City has signed Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest for $155.5 million and Chelsea has signed Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa for $156.9 million. All of a sudden, the signing of Rogers and Anderson have been the two most expensive signings of English players in the English Premier League all-time.
Rogers and Anderson were both on Team England at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Anderson played 632 minutes and Rogers played 339 minutes as England finished in third place during the tournament. It was a high scoring third place game in Miami on Saturday, as England defeated France 6-4.
Internationally, Rogers has one international goal for England. It was the game winning goal in a 3-0 England win over Wales at Wembley Stadium on October 9, 2025.
Rogers and Anderson are both 23 years of age. Rogers is from Halesowen and Anderson is from Whitley Bay. The overall general impression and reaction to the signings is not all that surprising. Did Chelsea and Manchester City take too much of a risk? These are midfielders that have not displayed much offense on the international stage. The transfer of Rogers is now the fifth most expensive transfer in history. It will now be interesting to see if the commitments Manchester City and Chelsea have made toward their future pays off.
