Just three months into his Newcastle United career, Anthony Gordon is being written off by a small but vocal minority. A player who, at just 22, has been bought with a long-term vision.
NUFC Twitter is bonkers sometimes, isn’t it? (But it’s also an incredible space when we win, so swings and roundabouts).
This is coming from a reformed Gordon ‘hater’ too. I’ve found myself going from balking at the mere mention of him coming to Newcastle to feeling fiercely protective over him.
Since joining, he’s only started three games and has truthfully only looked poor in one – and everyone else on the pitch looked poor against Villa, too.
Sunday was frustrating; although I wouldn’t have started him, I wouldn’t have dreamt of taking him off after a solid first half in which he created the majority of our attacks. A lot of the focus was on his two missed chances; but we didn’t buy him to score goals. And we’ve been here before – remember the pressure on Almiron when he wasn’t scoring?
There’s no doubt wingers should be able to score at least a few goals, but it’s not their main purpose. Their main purpose is to provide. And that’s exactly what he did on Sunday.
In just about every sub appearance, he’s looked bright. Still a little rough around the edges, but we knew that when we signed him. He was signed as a prospect for the future; one with potential and who can be moulded into Howe’s fast and high-pressing team. We knew he was far from the finished product when he signed and also know Howe has a history of bedding new signings into his team (look at Bruno when he first arrived from Lyon).
What changed my opinion on Gordon almost instantly after he signed was how buzzing he clearly is to be here. You could tell he fed off the crowd when introduced before the semi-final second leg against Southampton at home. It’s hard to fake that enthusiasm.
Plus, as gobby and diving as he was on the pitch at Everton, he’s still just young and was quite literally chased out of his boyhood club. At 21 years old. Perhaps that’s where some of the protectiveness is coming from – but he’s been nowhere near as poor as some would suggest and some of the criticism is genuinely unfair.
He didn’t set his price tag. Was it a lot? Yes. But the bright sparks we’ve seen in his sub appearances and the first half on Sunday give me hope that it’ll be worth it.
You can already tell how much of an impact Howe has had since he joined; he’s not diving anymore. He’s not crying to the referee every five minutes. He’s not flipping his lid at anyone in opposition colours (but truthfully, I won’t complain if/when he does). He still has the potential for the hot-headedness – see Brentford – but his response on Sunday couldn’t have been much better.
We’ve seen Howe have an instant impact on so many players; Almiron has been unleashed to become a lethal finisher when he was very much in Gordon’s shoes not too long ago. The same can be said for Joelinton – and he’s become bigger and stronger too. Jacob Murphy’s end product has improved immensely. For all the success stories, it’s crazy that some are already writing off our latest Howe project; especially when the boss has continually said what a superb player he’ll be in the future.
Callum Wilson got stick for his (most likely illness-induced) post-World Cup form and despite mostly starting on the bench at the moment, he’s never looked better. Fabian Schar looked a shell of himself under Steve Bruce and is once again a powerhouse in defence. Actually, he’s never looked better.
Howe has brought in two other young prospects in Botman and Isak who looked good but were still largely unproven – especially in England – and look how it’s turning out.
Once we sand away a couple of little rough edges in finishing, Gordon will come good – in Howe we trust.
Couldn’t agree more! Gordon has been lively and shown excellent vision and quick, precise decision making when he’s been on. I’m not sure what the critics are watching, but it’s not what I’m seeing.
Brian K(Quote)
He has always looked bright and lively when he has made an appearance, would have taken Murphy off before him against Southampton.
He’s got loads of time to adjust to new surroundings and probably a method of playing to suite the team.
Can only improve under Howe.
Joseph(Quote)