Newcastle United vs Liverpool is a very interesting fixture for Anthony Gordon.
The 23-year-old is set to start for Newcastle United, as Eddie Howe’s side prepare to face the Premier League leaders.
Liverpool have been outstanding this season, with Arne Slot’s forwards really impressing. Mo Salah has been the Premier League’s best player this season, Luis Diaz enjoyed a blistering start to the campaign, and now Cody Gakpo is finding form.
They have an array of options in attack, while they almost added Anthony Gordon to their squad during the summer.
As the Magpies scrambled to comply with PSR, Gordon was offered to Liverpool.
Newcastle almost swapped Liverpool player for Anthony Gordon
(THE SUN OUT, THE SUN ON SUNDAY OUT) Joe Gomez of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Manchester City FC at Anfield ...
Photo by Nikki Dyer – LFC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
The two clubs discussed a deal, with Newcastle eyeing up a Liverpool player in return. Jarrell Quansah was the first player who the Magpies floated, but the Reds said no.
Then attention turned to Joe Gomez, with the Daily Mail reporting that Newcastle proposed a deal worth £45million for the defender, while Gordon would head to Anfield for £75million.
The Daily Mail added that Gomez was interested in signing for Newcastle, with medicals pencilled in for both players in Leipzig while they were away with England at the Euros.
MORE NEWCASTLE STORIES
In the end, the deal collapsed when Newcastle found a better way to raise the money they needed. Yankuba Minteh and Elliot Anderson departed, while Gordon remained at St James’ Park.
Arne Slot hails ‘special’ Joe Gomez
Now Gordon is going to face the club he nearly joined, while he will take on the player who almost moved the other way as part of the deal.
Joe Gomez looks likely to start for Liverpool on Wednesday night due to Ibrahima Konate’s injury, and the 27-year-old defender has been highly praised by Arne Slot ahead of the game.
“I think everybody sees his quality but for exactly the reason you just said, it shows how his mentality is and how impressed I am by his mentality,” he said.
“Because it’s not always easy to come in during a game or to replace a player that did so well, and I think [Ibrahima] Konate did really well. And it’s not for the first time he’s experiencing this. Some players can do this for a season and then they are like, ‘Now I want to play, I want to go somewhere’.
“And Joe is patient in a good way, he always makes sure he is ready whenever the club or his teammates need him, and that is special when it comes to his mentality because not many players can do this for so many years that he has done this.
“But last season he played many, many, many games – I think you could call him a starter that season – and in some other seasons maybe he was more of the second choice in every other position in the last line.
“For him to keep doing this probably tells you a lot about his mentality but also what he does on a daily basis in training sessions and at home to stay as fit as he is, because he’s incredibly fit and ready to perform. That is more special than people think it is, that’s definitely true.”
Joe Gomez set to start against Newcastle as Eddie Howe’s centre-back search continues
While Slot praises Gomez for how special he is ahead of playing against Newcastle United, the Magpies continue their search for a new centre-back.
After the Gomez deal collapsed in the summer, Newcastle then made a failed attempt to sign Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace.
The summer transfer window closed without a right-sided centre-back arriving, and the quest for reinforcements is set to carry on into 2025.
Right now, Newcastle are desperately short of options in the middle of defence. Fabian Schar is Howe’s only fit right-sided centre-back, while Dan Burn and Lloyd Kelly are his options on the left.
And while a centre-back is required, Newcastle’s January priority is to sign a winger. That means that the centre-back search will likely carry on into the summer.
All the while, Joe Gomez proves his worth in the red of Liverpool. He can show Newcastle exactly what they could have won on Wednesday night, even if his arrival would have meant Anthony Gordon leaving.
But no matter how well Gomez plays, thank goodness Gordon is still at St James’ Park.
Related Posts