Sa Nottingham Forest suka amince da canja wurin Elliot Anderson zuwa Manchester City don fam miliyan 116 a bazara ta bara, da yawa sun yi tunanin amsa ɗaya ce: kashe kuɗi mai yawa don cike gurbin. Anderson shi ne mafi kwanciyar hankali a City Ground a cikin kakar da ba ta dace ba, kuma tafiyarsa ta bar babban rami a tsakiyar filin wasa.

An danganta sunayen kamar Lucas Bergvall da Tijjani Reijnders da zuwa Nottingham. Ba ɗaya daga cikinsu ya cika ba — Bergvall ya sake sa hannu a sabon kwantiragin Tottenham Hotspur, yayin da Reijnders ya koma Al-Qadsiah a Saudi Pro League. Duk da haka, Oliver Glasner ya sami mafita a kusa da shi.

McAtee ya fito a fili

James McAtee ya zo Nottingham Forest daga Manchester City a bazara ta 2025, yana sa hannu a kwantirage na shekaru biyar ta kusan fam miliyan 30. Kakarsa ta farko, duk da haka, ta yi yawa a cikin inuwa. Ɗan wasan mai shekara 24 ya fara wasanni biyu ne kawai a Premier League, tare da bayyanarsa 12 a matsayin madadin, yayin da Anderson da kyaftin Morgan Gibbs-White suka mamaye matsayin tsakiya. Farawa tara a Europa League sun ba McAtee wasu mintoci a filin wasa, amma ba dandali da yake bukata ba ne.

A tsarin 3-4-2-1 da Glasner yake so, ɗan wasan tsakiyar filin guda biyu suna da ayyuka daban-daban — ɗaya ya dawo da ƙwallo, ɗayan kuma ya sarrafa yanayin wasan kuma ya rarraba. Xaver Schlager ya ɗauki nauyin tsaro, tare da matsakaicin kalamai 4.1 a kowace minti 90. Wannan ya ba McAtee damar yin aiki a matsayin shugaban ƙirƙira — matsayin da Anderson ya mallaka a wani lokaci, da kuma wanda Adam Wharton ya kware a kusa da Glasner a Crystal Palace.

Lambobi da ke nuna canjin

Ƙididdiga suna nuna hoto mai ban sha'awa na ci gaban McAtee. Ci gaban wucewa ya tsaya a 73.9 — a cikin kashi 87 na sama a Premier League — idan aka kwatanta da 81 na Anderson wanda ya kasance a cikin kashi 97. Giɓi yana nan, amma yana raguwa, kuma yanayin muhimmi ne: McAtee yana daidaita wasansa daga matsayin da yake son far don wannan aikin sarrafa saurin wasan mai zurfi.

Abin da ya fi burgewa shi ne ci gaban wucewa ta taba ɗaya na 73.3, wanda ya sanya shi a cikin kashi 87 na sama a Premier League wannan kakar. Anderson ya yi rikodin 73.4 yana kwatanta a cikin kashi 86 a lokacin kakar 2025/26 — dawo mai kama sosai. Wannan saurin salon taba ɗaya shine daidai abin da Glasner yake daraja a tsakiyar filin, kuma McAtee yana isar da shi da iko.

Gudunmawarsa ta tsaro tana ci gaba da zama yanki da za a inganta, tare da ci gaban ƙalamen 56.3 yana matsawa a cikin kashi 16 kawai, idan aka kwatanta da 72.7 na Anderson a cikin kashi 79. Amma a cikin gwagwarmayar 50/50, McAtee ya fi tsohonsa — yana nuna ci gaban 79 idan aka kwatanta da 67.8 na Anderson — ma'ana shi ne mai yuwuwar samun ƙwallo a yanayin gogayya.

Nottingham Forest suna kai hari ta tsakiya

Tasirin McAtee ya wuce ƙididdiga na mutum ɗaya. Wucewa tafiyarsa 102 ta gaba suna sanya shi na huɗu a cikin 'yan wasa, kuma idan an cire masu tsaron raga da masu tsaro na tsakiya, ya tsallake zuwa sama. Shi na biyu bayan Gibbs-White don damar da aka ƙirƙira tare da 16, kuma kashi 31 na hare-haren Nottingham Forest suna wucewa ta tsakiya — ƙimar da ta fi ta kowa a raba a Premier League — wani ɓangare yana nuna matsayin McAtee da yanke shawararsa.

Ƙungiyar Glasner kuma ta nuna ingantaccen kayan aiki a kan hare-hare. Sai Manchester United, tare da 15, da suka yi rikodin ƙarin bugawa daga hare-haren counter fiye da na Nottingham Forest na 14 a kakar Premier League ta 2026/27. Aikin xG da bai cika ba na Nottingham Forest na 10.28 — mafi girma a cikin ƙungiyar — yana nuni da cewa sakamako a ƙarshe zai kama aikin.

McAtee bai cika sake yin abin da Anderson ya bayar ba tukuna, amma ya gina wani abu sabon abu kuma wataƙila ya fi dacewa da tsarin Glasner. Bayan kakar jira, ya zama mai muhimmanci a duk abin da Nottingham Forest ke gina.