Anthony Gordon sealed himself a blockbuster move to Barcelona prior to the World Cup but has since underwhelmed with England, and the winger has been called out
Anthony Gordon has struggled at the World Cup thus far
Anthony Gordon has struggled at the World Cup thus far(Image: Getty Images)
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Graeme Souness claims that Barcelona will be "wondering what they've bought" after seeing Anthony Gordon underwhelm for England at the World Cup.
The winger has just swapped Newcastle for the Catalans, making a blockbuster £70million move. He has joined the growing number of leading English players opting to ply their trade abroad, but will have to operate under huge scrutiny at one of the world's biggest clubs.
In midweek, he was part of an England attacking unit that failed to break through Ghana's low block, with questions asked of the team's forward players. Souness claims that the former Everton man has been playing far too safe, and doing so in Spain will be a recipe for disaster.
He wrote in the Telegraph: "It is absolutely fair to say they will have watched their new £70m winger Anthony Gordon in England’s opening group games and wondered what they have bought.
"If Gordon turns up in Barcelona and plays as conservatively as he did against Croatia and Ghana then he will not be staying in Catalonia for too long."
Gordon just enjoyed the best goalscoring season of his career, firing in 17 goals for Newcastle, and that prompted Barcelona to act. But Souness has warned that playing at the Nou Camp will mean he is compared to talisman Lamine Yamal - who is a tough standard to match.
"Lamine Yamal is the template for a Barcelona winger," he said. "We all saw what he did against Saudi Arabia in their second game, taking his men on and attacking the back post to get himself a goal. You are kidding yourself if you don’t think everyone around Barcelona, from fans to the media to the players, isn’t watching and saying: 'If Yamal is doing that, what is Gordon doing?'"
Anthony Gordon will play for Barcelona next season
Anthony Gordon will play for Barcelona next season(Image: Getty Images)
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England boss Thomas Tuchel didn't shy away from admitting that Gordon, as part of England's threat down the left, had not produced as he'd hoped during the World Cup given the promise they showed in the warm up games.
The German said: “We had a very good match against Costa Rica with Anthony and the unit, it's more a unit on the left side than it is individuals or ‘the winger didn't do enough.’ The unit on the left side hasn't provided the same quality as they did against Costa Rica."
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