Anthony Gordon was superb on the pitch on Saturday, a non-stop display and scoring the winning goal against Chelsea.
Then after the Newcastle United win, the match winner’s performance was equally impressive.
Anthony Gordon going on the offensive after embarrassing behaviour from the likes of Roy Keane, Wayne Rooney and the one that was really disappointing, Alan Shearer.
They had all badly let themselves down in midweek, when mocking Anthony Gordon for not starting against Barcelona, yet coming on late in the game from the bench.
Alan Shearer and the rest making clear they thought it was unacceptable that Anthony Gordon had decided not to make himself available to start the Champions League match.
The only problem was…they were absolutely wrong.
Eddie Howe told everybody the truth on Friday, saying that it was his decision alone and he had taken the expert medical advice onboard.
The ignorance of Alan Shearer, Wayne Rooney, Roy Keane and others exposed, as they were happy to condemn a player without bothering to find out the facts first.
Anthony Gordon had been in bed ill for three days immediately before the match and so even on the morning of the Barcelona game, he wasn’t able to be part of the group session where the players had a walkthrough on preparation for that evening’s game.
After scoring the winner at Chelsea, Anthony Gordon getting the chance to go on the offensive and he did a great job.
The United star speaking to Match of The Day and responding to the shameful comments from Alan Shearer, Wayne Rooney and Roy Keane: “Usually I don’t like to clear stuff up because I don’t care too much…but this one does need clearing up, because it was just nonsense. When I got to the stadium [ahead of the Barcelona match] the manager told me I wasn’t playing, which I didn’t like very much, but that was his decision and the team played well.”
Wayne Rooney [who was working pitchside before the match, questioned why Anthony Gordon “wouldn’t shake our hands” beforehand but then “sat in a dressing room with his teammates.”
Anthony Gordon hitting back: “Saying that I didn’t want to play in the biggest game of my career is absolute nonsense. Wayne Rooney said I went past and didn’t shake their hands and then went into the changing room. I didn’t. I got changed by myself in a changing room [by myself]…it was just me and a sink. Complete nonsense. I think they need to do better at what they are doing.”
I wrote about this the other day on The Mag and as I said then, I really like Alan Shearer giving his insight on Newcastle United and I agree with him the vast majority of times, plus he obviously speaks honestly and with passion about United, as he is a lifelong fan, same as me and you. However, I think an apology is very much in order on this occasion, surely Alan Shearer now accepts that he got this badly wrong.
I expect nothing less from the likes of Man U fan boys such as Rooney and Keane, who have no Newcastle United connection, Shearer though a very different case.
Eddie Howe on Friday morning spelling out just how wrong Alan Shearer and his punditry mates called the situation.
The United boss making crystal clear who made the decision: “Anthony Gordon was absolutely willing to play [start] in the game against Barcelona. I know there are a lot of comments [but] it was my decision not to start him, based on the fact he had been ill that morning and had not attended the training session. He was prepared to play [start] but in consultation with the medical team, we didn’t think he was fit to play [start].”
Illness has affected a number of players in the Newcastle United squad and indeed Nick Woltemade missed the Man U match last week. It was later revealed that the sickness had made him suffer significant weight loss in a short period of time. I think we have all been there and appreciate what kind of sickness is being talked about, those times when our body feels like it is trying to expel your insides via every available route! I know how bad I have felt in the past, struggling to raise my head off the pillow, never mind the thought of trying to compete at the highest level against one of the best football teams in the world!
Whatever happened to giving a Newcastle United player (or manager…) the benefit of the doubt?
It is ironic that so many trolls (not meaning Alan Shearer by the way!) who claim to be Newcastle United fans, want to claim that Anthony Gordon has this season prioritised Champions League over everything else. Claiming he hasn’t given the same effort in the Premier League.
Yet now these same trolls/Newcastle United fans also want to claim that Anthony Gordon is now willingly opting out of facing Barcelona at St James’ Park in the last 16 of the Champions League!
Please let it make sense…
The take on this was so daft to start with, from Alan Shearer and all the rest. The idea that Anthony Gordon contributes so much to getting United to the Champions League last 16 and then decides to supposedly opt out of facing Barcelona simply on a whim. Especially when everybody previously agreed that Anthony Gordon was absolutely desperate to impress in the Champions League, the most high profile club competition in the world.
As I say, what happened to giving the benefit of the doubt to one of our own, you know, a Newcastle United player who has contributed so much to the success of recent years? Especially when it all made no sense anyway.
If it had been say a Premier League run of the mill match that Anthony Gordon hadn’t started due to illness, then it would at least make some kind of sense to question it. Especially if say, Newcastle United had a huge Champions League last 16 match against Barcelona AFTER that run of the mill PL game.
However, believing that the opposite is true, that Anthony Gordon would willingly miss the Barcelona match to then want to play against Chelsea instead this Saturday…simply ridiculous.
This insidious anti Anthony Gordon nonsense needs to stop. As I said earlier, we can’t expect any better from those who don’t care about NUFC, however, for Newcastle United fans to be like this, it is beyond a joke.
Eddie Howe at his pre-Chelsea press conference went on to talk about the wider Anthony Gordon debate: “My perception is that Anthony Gordon does face a lot of scrutiny, but I think that comes with being a top player, I don’t think you can escape that in this day and age, maybe part of that is his history and how he’s ended up at this club and the clubs that he has played for previously…”
The United boss going on to say: “As soon as you play for England of course, you go to a different level in terms of scrutiny and expectation. So the modern player has to withstand all of those things. I think Anthony has done that well and he is single-minded enough to blank out a lot of the noise. It is one of his strengths.”
The only opinion that matters of course, is that of Eddie Howe.
After the win over Chelsea, he reaffirmed his respect and appreciation for Anthony Gordon: “He is so single-minded and focused on what he needs to do, that a lot of the noise just brushes off him, which is a great thing to be able to do if you’re him. I would encourage every player to do it. Don’t get distracted, don’t absorb it, don’t take anything in – just focus on what you need to do. That’s what he always does. He’s been in a really good place of late. I’ve been very happy with what he’s delivered. This was a big game [against Chelsea] and he really stepped up. He scored the goal but contributed in so many ways to the win.”