The Scouser only had one touch and did not start the game but those who wanted to jeer him only witnessed star enjoying his trip to the Hill Dickinson
Anthony Gordon arrives at Hill Dickinson Stadium
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Anthony Gordon may have been restricted to an injury-time cameo on his return to Merseyside, but the Newcastle United star got the last laugh on his way out of the Hill Dickinson Stadium last night.
Back from a hip injury, Gordon was left out of the starting XI in favour of in-form left winger Harvey Barnes with Eddie Howe later revealing he had to rotate his squad a little given the congested fixture list. Gordon left Everton three years ago for £45m to the fury of the blue half of Merseyside.
His links with his boyhood team, Liverpool, have further irked Everton fans, but the England international remains committed to Newcastle. Despite a 4-1 defeat at Everton's new home and the stadium being deserted by full-time, a handful of local fans waited outside the player entrance after the defeat.
With the TV cameras being packed away, Gordon strode through to a chorus of jeers with one or two well-wishers also in the mix. But Gordon took it all in good spirits and offered a wave to the crowd before heading back.
Gordon managed just one touch but was able to enjoy the tremendous ovation from the 3,000 Newcastle fans who will be eager to see him banging the goals in soon. With the majority of fans left in the stadium of the black and white variety, Gordon's name was bellowing around the Hill Dickinson.
This was not the big day many Evertonians had planned as the club's former hero was celebrated by Toon supporters. Having missed a penalty and been jeered last season, it must have been a sweet moment for the Kirkdale lad.
Don't underestimate that victory
That was Newcastle's first away win in the Premier League this season and the first on the road since April in the top-flight. With Eddie Howe's side serving up wins at home, it was the away form that was in danger of damaging the campaign.
But Newcastle got back in touch with the European chasers and fully deserved their win. In truth, they never looked like they were going to surrender the lead on Saturday night after going ahead on 52 seconds thanks to Malick Thiaw's header.
After that, the goals flowed from Lewis Miley, Nick Woltemade, and Thiaw again. Afterwards, Howe stayed humble and measured but underlined what an important moment the win was.
Newcastle soaked up the applause from 3,000 fans celebrating a win for the first time this year and looked determined to make the most of it. Howe said: "It was a massive win for us, first away win of the season. We have been chasing that win, and it was elusive so far, but that was a big moment today. I'm so pleased that the players won, so I didn't have to talk about the away form today.
"We scored goals, which we haven't done regularly enough away from home. We looked fresh, and we made some tactical tweaks."
Another feat for United was that this was back to back wins in the Premier League for the first time this season and first time since April when United beat Man United then Crystal Palace.
Nick Woltemade success story continues
The German international's £69m move from Stuttgart attracted plenty of scrutiny in his own country. But he continues to show what a class act he is and at 23 he can only get better.
That's now seven goals for Newcastle and nine in total for club and country this season for Woltemade. He is holding his own in the Premier League top scorer chart with five top-flight goals to his name and a 42% shooting accuracy record.
Given Newcastle staff have admitted the service has not been where it should be, that is a frightening stat. If things start clicking and Yoane Wissa combines when free from injury, the Toon frontline could have new levels to hit.
When asked after the game about adapting to life on Tyneside, Woltemade said: "Really easy transition, the guys welcomed us really well, and the fans make it feel like home already. It is a nice feeling for us. I think I can improve my game, but I score goals, which is the most important things for a striker. To get a good feeling at a new club, especially in a new league, I am really happy about it."