{"id":700777,"date":"2026-05-29T04:17:14","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T04:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/700777\/"},"modified":"2026-05-29T04:17:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-29T04:17:14","slug":"direct-intense-selfish-what-are-barcelona-getting-in-anthony-gordon-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/700777\/","title":{"rendered":"Direct, intense \u2026 selfish? What are Barcelona getting in Anthony Gordon? | Barcelona"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jos\u00e9 Mourinho was a man on a mission. Once the final whistle blew, he made a beeline for Anthony Gordon and not only embraced the England winger, but whispered four words in his ear. \u201cYou are too much,\u201d was the message from Benfica\u2019s manager after his side lost a Champions League match 3-0 at Newcastle<\/a> last October.<\/p>\n

Gordon had scored one goal, created another and terrorised Benfica\u2019s defence in the course of the sort of performance that explains why Barcelona are paying \u00a370m<\/a> for his turbo-charged talent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a big compliment for me because, as a kid growing up, Jos\u00e9 Mourinho was my favourite manager in the whole world,\u201d said Gordon. \u201cI idolised him.\u201d Given the Portuguese\u2019s expected installation for a second stint in charge of Real Madrid, it may be prudent for Gordon to keep those memories private at the Camp Nou, where his arrival is intended as part of the plan to keep Madrid firmly in their place.<\/p>\n

Rather like Mourinho off the pitch, Gordon will bring unpredictability to Barcelona<\/a>. At first glance, a versatile right-footed forward arguably at his best on the left, but capable of playing across the frontline, is far from a classic Bar\u00e7a player.<\/p>\n

Aggressive and direct, he revels in accelerating into space behind defenders and pressing, relentlessly, from the front with rare intensity. The 25-year-old does not appear overly interested in attempting to slow games down or helping weave intricate passing patterns. Indeed, he does not really do patient. Where other players demand the ball be played to their feet, Gordon surges into space in anticipation of deliveries and charges at defenders in destabilising fashion. Markers do not know whether he will beat them with pace or dribbling, let alone opt to cross or keep on running.<\/p>\n

Hansi Flick may pitch him as a direct competitor for Raphinha on the left, but Gordon is also capable of indulging in the positional interchanging that promises to make an attacking trio also containing Lamine Yamal extra formidable. Yet if a player who spent much of last season at centre-forward often forces defenders into taking gambles they would prefer to avoid, Gordon\u2019s signing is not without risk.<\/p>\n

Newcastle fans became irritated by the inconsistency of a creator who too often underwhelmed as the team finished 12th in the Premier League. In 26 league games, Gordon contributed six goals, three of them penalties, and only two assists. It was a different story in the Champions League, where he scored 10 times in 12 appearances \u2013 although five of those goals came from the penalty spot \u2013 and contributed two assists.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do love the Champions League,\u201d Gordon said in January. \u201cI think it brings out extra in players. I\u2019d be lying if I said it didn\u2019t bring out extra motivation or adrenaline in me.\u201d<\/p>\n

If those comments did not go down overly well with supporters \u2013 many of whom are far from distraught at Bar\u00e7a\u2019s swoop \u2013 his analysis of Sunderland\u2019s 2-1 win at St James\u2019 Park in March<\/a> was received dimly in certain quarters. \u201cSunderland are not a very good team compared to us,\u201d said Gordon, who had given Newcastle a 10th minute lead.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe shouldn\u2019t lose to them. They were doing a man-for-man press, but with two players always marking me so we had a spare man. But we didn\u2019t ever find him. That\u2019s one of the easiest things to do, but we never used that advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anthony Gordon scored the first of his 10 goals in the Champions League this season against Barcelona in September. Photograph: Marc Atkins\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

If such analysis failed to endear Gordon to a Sunderland squad that would qualify for the Europa League<\/a> after finishing seventh, his willingness to blame teammates was similarly less than diplomatic. Perhaps significantly, a month earlier Gordon had been forcibly separated from Kieran Trippier as Newcastle, then 5-0 up against Qarabag, headed towards the tunnel at half-time in Baku. To Trippier\u2019s consternation, Gordon insisted on taking a penalty that would provide him with a fourth goal of a game won 6-1<\/a>. The former England full-back had wanted the out-of-form Nick Woltemade to be offered that kick and was outraged by Gordon\u2019s perceived selfishness.<\/p>\n

Although the pair made up, that perhaps explains why an amicable parting of the ways has not broken as many hearts as might have been expected.<\/p>\n

Such a lack of angst also reflects Newcastle\u2019s necessary shift from being reluctant sellers to a trading club. As executives wait to find out how heavily Uefa will punish them for breaching European spending rules, there is an acceptance that overseeing a necessary squad rebuild will involve raising money through player sales. If a decent offer is received for Sandro Tonali, it would be no surprise for him follow Gordon out.<\/p>\n

There is a tacit acknowledgment at Newcastle that besting their fierce local rivals and football\u2019s spending regulations will involve copying elements of Sunderland\u2019s recruitment model. Just as Sunderland\u2019s signings are told that a stint at the Stadium of Light can preface a move to an elite club, Newcastle, too, have begun selling themselves as a potential stepping stone to greater things.<\/p>\n

Tellingly, Ross Wilson, Newcastle\u2019s sporting director, is believed to be close to concluding a \u00a317m deal with Reims for Ewen Jaouen, a 20-year-old, 6ft 6in France youth international goalkeeper who kept 15 clean sheets in 35 Ligue 2 appearances this season. Wilson is also pursuing a right-back, a winger and a midfielder, with Udinese\u2019s 23-year-old French holding midfielder Arthur Atta, available for about \u00a330m-35m, of interest.<\/p>\n

If Gordon will surely need to refine aspects of his game and, perhaps, diplomatic skills at the Camp Nou, his old club seem poised for an even more dramatic reinvention.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jos\u00e9 Mourinho was a man on a mission. Once the final whistle blew, he made a beeline for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":700778,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-700777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/700777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=700777"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/700777\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/700778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=700777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=700777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=700777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}