Anthony Gordon has signed a new, long-term contract with Newcastle United, ending rumors that he was considering a move to Liverpool.
After winning the Magpies’ Player of the Season award with 12 goals and 11 assists, the 23-year-old entered the summer with a lot of confidence.
Gordon, however, was uneasy when he returned to Tyneside before the start of the current Premier League season. The winger was enmeshed in the team’s desperate attempt to adhere to the Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and seldom played a ball for England during Euro 2024.
Although Amanda Staveley later acknowledged to The Athletic that she and the club were afraid of selling Gordon and Alexander Isak, United went on to transfer Elliot Anderson to Nottingham Forest and Yankuba Minteh to Brighton & Hove Albion, respectively.
According to reports, Newcastle and Liverpool had discussions, and after the season’s sluggish start, several people questioned whether Gordon had his head turned. However, after extending his tenure at St. James’ Park, the former Everton player has dismissed such rumors.
Because I didn’t start out well, people thought that all the rumors were accurate, but in actuality, I wasn’t very fit,” Gordon told NUFCTV.
Even just getting back to myself has been difficult for me this summer. It was difficult for me both mentally and physically because I spent the entire summer sitting on a bench. It probably still is, but it took me a few games to get back into the groove of things. I never doubted that I would start to get in shape.
I feel more confidence the more I play for this team. All we need to do is regain that and acclimate to playing our style once more.
Yes, it’s challenging because external perceptions can be influenced by information that people read, and while some of it may be accurate, it’s not always the case,” Gordon continued.
“I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, but like I say, it’s been fairly tricky, so knowing that this [new contract] was in the works and waiting for it to be released has been difficult for me.I’ve always been committed, and everyone knows it. I’m content. Gordon remarked of head coach Eddie Howe:
I talked to him a lot during the summer, and he was excellent. He was simply trying to make the process simpler for me by being honest with me; he didn’t want the season to be one where I was impacted for too long by all the rumors and bullshit.
“I believe he was aware that it would have a lasting impact on me, but it was about reducing that as much as we could. After the summer, I don’t think three or four poor games is the worst!