Elliot Anderson fires cheeky Sunderland dig to show true Newcastle United colours
Former Newcastle United midfielder Elliot Anderson paid tribute to his mother after scoring against Sunderland.
Elliot Anderson could not resist taunted Sunderland supporters after scoring in a dominant 5-0 win for Nottingham Forest last night.
The Tricky Trees opened up an eight-point cushion on the bottom three to pile the pressure on relegation rivals West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur. Strikes from Chris Wood, Morgan Gibbs-White, Igor Jesus, Anderson and a Trai Hume own goal did the damage at the Stadium of Light.
Despite being in a relegation fight all season, Forest now sit just three points behind Newcastle United. Eddie Howe’s men make the daunting trip to title-chasing Arsenal later today.
Elliot Anderson trolls Sunderland
Boyhood Toon fan Anderson could not resist showing his black-and-white colours at the full-time whistle. He posted on Instagram: “That one was extra special! 5-0 Win and a goal against the Mackems.”
It was another telling reminder of what Newcastle could have won with the England international. Now a seasoned Premier League star and Three Lions regular, the Magpies reluctantly sold the Whitley Bay native due to PSR pressures.
Eddie Howe has openly admitted he would love to see Anderson return to St James’ Park. However, his price tag might prove beyond Newcastle’s capabilities, with Manchester City interested around the £100million mark.
Elliot Anderson pays tribute to late mother
Speaking to Sky Sports. post-match, Anderson paid tribute to his late mother, Helen, who sadly passed away earlier this month. He said: “We're on a great run. It’s taken time but we're believing in ourselves and the manager is right behind us. We're enjoying it. I'm happy to score here. My mum would have been really proud of that one."
Eddie Howe downplays buy-back clause
The Toon boss also confirmed there was no buy-back clause in Andeson’s exit deal while speaking to reporters last year. He said: "It certainly was a rushed deal. We were on the clock and trying to explore every avenue to find another way to avoid a points deduction.
"In terms of buy-back clauses, we were not in a good bargaining position at all. So our strength to negotiate those sort of things was non-existent."
"I wouldn't say it's on my mind every day, but there are certain reminders in certain moments. It didn't sit right with me then, doesn't sit right with me today that we, as a football club, were forced to make a decision that we didn't want to make.
“A player that had given everything to rise through the ranks here to try to play for Newcastle, was ended by financial restrictions. But it's happened, and we wish Elliot nothing but success. It's nothing at all to do with him; it's to do with the restrictions we were under."