Newcastle's 'Billy Elliot' set to have pick of Championship clubs ahead of loan

Talented Newcastle teen Elliot Anderson has confirmed he is open to another loan move - and that is likely to be music to the ears of the ample Championship clubs chasing his signature.

Anderson first came to the fore early last year after making his senior debut for the Magpies aged just 18 against Arsenal. But it was only a year later when people truly began to sit up and take notice.

He joined Bristol Rovers in the second half of the 2021-22 campaign and played a pivotal role in helping the Gas seal promotion from League Two. The climax of their campaign arrived on the very final day in a scarcely-believable 7-0 win over Scunthorpe to seal the most unexpected of promotions. He finished the campaign with seven goals and six assists from 21 appearances for Joey Barton's side.

That form created a buzz around Anderson with numerous second tier clubs now jostling to get to the front of the queue and sign him on loan for the coming season. Luton, Huddersfield, West Brom and Millwall are all credited with an interest but there are likely to be many more also eyeing up Anderson.

At present, he is on Newcastle's pre-season tour of Austria and while manager Eddie Howe has spoken fondly of him, the expectation is that a temporary move to the Championship is the next logical step in his career progression. Speaking about his situation to NUTV, Anderson said: "I've just got to try and impress as much as I can really, and do my best.

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"I've got to try and compete for a place around the team and see how I can do. I think not trying too hard to do that (is important) - just do your stuff, and see if you catch an eye, and work as hard as you can. It's kind of like a free hit - I'll give it my best shot, and if they think I need another season out (on loan), I'm happy to do that. Whatever's best for me.

"I'd say for me, probably playing games is the most important thing, to be honest - carrying on my run that I have, and just trying to keep striving. Hopefully that's here, or if it's somewhere else on loan, I'll be giving it my all."

It was during that aforementioned loan stint in Bristol where Anderson coined the nickname 'Billy Elliot'.

Despite that tongue-in-cheek reference to the title character in the smash-hit 2000 film set in the North-East about a working-class boy who discovers a passion for ballet, Barton also compared the youngster to a certain Argentine legend.

Barton said last season: "Billy, they've called him - a Geordie Boy, a bit of a ballerina! I've been listening to Bill Shankly tapes a lot. He talked a lot about a 19-year-old Diego Maradona and how he slows down in the penalty area, exactly like Elliot Anderson does. He's such a talent."