Gordon's representatives were pictured meeting Barcelona executives ahead of the summer transfer window
Anthony Gordon of Newcastle United and Marcus Rashford of FC Barcelona during the Champions League knockout tie earlier this season
Anthony Gordon of Newcastle United and Marcus Rashford of FC Barcelona during the Champions League knockout tie earlier this season(Image: 2026 Newcastle United)
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Anthony Gordon's future in the summer transfer window has dominated the Newcastle United news agenda this week.
Gordon's representatives were pictured meeting Barcelona sporting director Deco and football co-ordinator Bojan Krkic in the Spanish press on Monday evening and while Chronicle Live has been told that their presence in Catalonia was to discuss other targets with the Nou Camp club, there is no doubt that the forward's future is being discussed by agents and club officials across Europe's top divisions.
Newcastle United CEO David Hopkinson admitted back in March that the club may sell one or two of their star players this summer but insisted they will do so on their terms, having learned the lessons of the Alexander Isak saga last summer.
The Magpies cannot allow another long-running transfer impasse to cripple their summer transfer plans and cannot afford to sell any of their stars on deadline day. Any sale needs to be decisive, bold, and sanctioned quickly, while extracting the best possible transfer fee.
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Sandro Tonali and Tino Livramento have also been linked with moves away from Tyneside but it is interest in Gordon that feels the most substantial.
Reports in Spain suggested his agents are on a tour of Europe meeting respective suitors, with Bayern Munich also known to be heavily interested in the England international's services. Chelsea have also been mentioned this week as a possible destination.
The sticking point will be the price. Newcastle are demanding £74million for a player they signed for £40million and developed into an England international starter, one of the Premier League's leading wingers and a prolific Champions League goalscorer - only Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe scored more than the 10 goals Gordon bagged in this season's competition.
Given Newcastle paid £40m to sign him from Everton in January 2023 and he is under contract until 2030, that uptick in price seems fair to match his marked improvement since working under Eddie Howe.
The problem is that is a price Bayern Munich are unwilling to pay and it is a price Barcelona, with their well documented financial issues, would struggle to match, too.
There is a theory that those images may have been released in the Spanish media to apply pressure on Manchester United as Barcelona look to negotiate the £26m fee they had agreed to make Marcus Rashford's loan deal a permanent stay. Rashford has impressed on Barcelona's left-wing this season but there is a chance he could return to Old Trafford now Ruben Amorim is no longer the club's manager.
What the logic would be in being pictured talking to a player who will cost three times the price to do that remains to be seen but it is clear Rashford's future is central to whether Barcelona do pursue a move for the Newcastle star.
Ironically, Rashford and Gordon will do battle to start on England's left-wing at this summer's World Cup and they could be pitted against each other in who Barcelona decide to pursue at club level, too.
Our sister title, the Manchester Evening News, report that Barcelona's option to sign Rashford for £26m expires in early June. If the Blaugrana have not exercised it by then, we can assume they don't intend to trigger that option.
That would make a summer pursuit of Gordon seem a lot more likely. Equally, if they do trigger Rashford's option, it would be a major surprise if they pursued a move for Gordon, too. That clear deadline will give Newcastle a big clue over what, if anything, happens next between the Spanish champions and Gordon.
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