Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe applauds fans after the match at Fulham. (Action Images via Reuters)
Anthony Gordon has shown he can be a match-winner for Newcastle United even when he’s not on the pitch. The former Everton man was dropped to the bench for his first start of the season to make way for Harvey Barnes on the left, but the summer signing was forced off with an early injury.
With Barnes out, Gordon was able to make an immediate impact. He provided the assist for Sean Longstaff’s first goal, a well-taken goal that could easily have been disallowed as a handball.
From there, Gordon scored his second goal of the season with a superb long-range effort to make it five minutes into the second half. He was the best player on the pitch and was named POTM after the final whistle.
“I was really disappointed not to be on the pitch against Sheffield United,” Gordon said.
After the 8-0 victory, Gordon was interviewed on NUFC TV and was asked if he was disappointed to start on the bench instead of in the starting line-up.
“I was a little disappointed,” Gordon said. “I want to play every game and I think I’m playing really well right now, so I didn’t want to come out.”
He added: “In the end, we’ve got a really tough season coming up and I think there’s going to be a lot of changes. It’s a team game. When I came on, it was just about doing my part. I wasn’t sulking, I was trying to make the most of the game for the team.”
It’s great to see Gordon be disappointed. After all, the Magpies have so many games coming up and Eddie Howe will need to keep his team fresh by mixing it up as often as possible.
He did so on Sunday, when he made four alterations to his starting line-up, and it is likely that he will make even more alterations on Wednesday night when Newcastle host Manchester City in their Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at St James’ Park.
For his part, Gordon will be keen to get back into the starting line-up and will undoubtedly feel he should after an excellent performance from the bench on Sunday.
