Gordon turns doubters into believers

It's January 2023 and Newcastle United are looking to sign an attacking player to help them return to the Champions League after a 20-year absence. The most prominent name in recruiting discussions is Anthony Gordon.

His £45million move from Everton was met with a mixed response. Questions were raised about his attitude a few months after a heated encounter with his new team-mates at St James' Park when he was still an Everton player.

Those fears were compounded by the angry reaction to his new manager Eddie Howe's substitution at Brentford after Newcastle made a frustrating start to the game on the pitch, despite the Magpies finishing fourth in the Premier League.

Now with 10 Premier League goals and 10 assists in his first full season on Tyneside – the first Newcastle player to achieve the feat since Ruel Fox in 1994-95 – Gordon has a place in Gareth Southgate's England squad for Euro 2024 in sight. The 23-year-old's doubters have now become believers.

“He knew what he wanted and what he needed”

It is this commitment to self-improvement that has been the driving force behind Gordon's rise from a skinny, rough-hewn prodigy to a beacon of hope for England. His versatility and ability to play anywhere up front was also a big advantage.

Neil Dewsnip, now director of football at Plymouth Argyle, signed the 11-year-old Gordon when he was head coach of Everton's academy before working more closely with him as coach of England's under-18 team.

“Anthony was my last signing at Everton. He was a boy we looked at a few times, as did Liverpool,” Dewsnip tells BBC Sport. “He was a bit of a late developer, physically immature.”

Another former Everton academy coach, who wished to remain anonymous, insists the club held its nerve against Gordon, whose lack of strength might well have cost him had he emerged a few years earlier.

“We could see he had potential,” he says. “The academy did well to stick with him. It was about being patient and keeping him in the system. In the past, players like Anthony may have been left behind, but as he got stronger, he came into his own.

“Even back then he was always very determined. He knew what he wanted and what he needed.”

“He has evolved”

Gordon began his secondary education at Alsop High School before being transferred to one of Everton's partner schools, Wade Deacon in Widnes, at the age of 14. He traveled there from his home in Kirkdale, Liverpool.

“We always thought he was a big boy, and he is. We knew he would be fast, and he is fast,” the coach continues. “It's about looking at the boy and trying to see the man at the end of the street. It’s thanks to Anthony that he has continued to develop.”

There was a reunion with Dewsnip in England, where Gordon, together with an illustrious group of young players, won the Limoges tournament in France in 2018.

“This team consisted of Bukayo Saka, Mason Greenwood, James Garner, Curtis Jones and Folarin Balogun,” adds Dewsnip. “He was part of a group full of exciting attacking talent.

“We had a bond with each other. He came and talked to me over coffee. I coached his agent when he was younger and there was a connection with Everton. Then I watched his progress from a distance. I saw him playing for the U21s at Burnley. He was on one side and Cole Palmer was on the other. I thought, 'My God, wow!'”

Gordon's beginnings at Everton in some ways mirror his recent turnaround at Newcastle. He was never afraid to make his feelings known to staff, but he always knew how to turn a setback into a path to progress following a six-month spell with Preston North End in 2021.

His former coach recalls: “I remember doing a finishing session with him once when he was 14. He didn't look happy and when I spoke to him he said, 'I don't need that, I can do that.' I need a challenge. I need resistance.' I thought, “Wow, telling the coaches what he wants at his age.”

“I think the loan he had at Preston helped him a lot. He started well and then didn't get his way. He was in and out. He came back from that loan, worked over the summer and that was the trigger. He kept kicking. When you look at it now and when you look at it when it first broke, the difference is huge.”

In an interview last month with former Manchester United defender Gary Neville on The Overlap podcast, Gordon spoke about controlling his own development at Newcastle.

“I stay outside all the time [after training] because I feel like it ended too quickly and I'm not ready to go in,” Gordon said.

“The gaffer knows I don’t like working in the gym. He knows I like to do what makes me feel good, and I've been injury-free this season. It worked.”

“He has talent that people are desperately looking for”

Dewsnip says Gordon's quality was never in question but his development has brought continuity.

“He did extremely well,” he says. “His ability to run with the ball was always clear.” When defending, he could get you out of your penalty area and into the opposition's area incredibly quickly. He is also really talented in one-on-one situations.

“The next three or four years could be very exciting for Anthony. He has the talent that people are desperately looking for: he can score goals and create goals. As you get older and physically more mature, you may do these things more often. Maybe we’re starting to realize that.”

Dewsnip has worked closely with Southgate and says there is no better man for Gordon to impress before the summer.

“Gareth and Steve (Holland, assistant manager) are very meticulous in their preparation. You will have watched all the top talent and left no stone unturned. The goal is to win the European Championships. If Anthony is in that group, he has earned the right.”

Whatever happens with England, Gordon appears to be a player who can help his club achieve greater success and his side visit Manchester United on Wednesday in the race for another European Cup win.

Howe has certainly been pleased with the way his new signing has grown on Tyneside.

“I’m happy for him,” he said after Gordon’s first England appearance in March. “He worked so hard. This is what he's wanted since he was a little boy. He has been outstanding and continues to grow week after week. He scored goals and created goals. He did an excellent job for the team.”