Anthony Gordon appears to have developed a bond with Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal.
While he is still searching for his first goal in Catalan colours, five assists in as many games has immediately endeared Gordon to the Barca faithful. Newcastle United swiftly moved the 25-year-old on at the end of last season.
A looming UEFA penalty forced the Magpies to sanction an early exit, with Gordon - who sat out of the final six games amid the speculation - keen to join the La Liga giants. His exit was amicable and, unlike other high-profile departures, the winger has immediately hit the ground running.
Anthony Gordon and Lamine Yamal
Despite the six-year age difference, Gordon and Yamal have seemingly struck a close relationship since his £70million move. The former Toon winger has predominantly played on the left flank under Hansi Flick.
Barca did flirt with the idea of using Gordon as a No.9 in pre-season but Raphinha led the line against Valencia last weekend. A tireless work ethic is clearly proving a hit with his new teammates.
After thrashing Feyenoord 5-1 in the Champions League, Gordon - who came off the bench - hailed the team’s five-game winning streak on social media. Spanish superstar Yamal commented “broskyyy” to give the ex-Newcastle man his seal of approval.
A post shared by @anthonygordon
Ross Wilson on Anthony Gordon
Speaking last weekend, Toon sporting director Ross Wilson shared the internal delight at St James’ Park towards Gordon’s move to Barcelona. He said: “Anthony Gordon was always in the plan that he was going to move on. We were delighted for him to get such a prestigious move to Barcelona, that was great.
“I think it was pretty clear most of the second part of last season that Sandro Tonali was going to move on. And for Bruno Guimaraes, I think it's well documented, that wasn't a transfer that we were really comfortable with.
“So there's no point in us saying here today that it was or wasn't. I thought it was something we had to react to, that was the question, because football is all about reacting to different challenges, and that was a new challenge for us, but one hopefully we reacted to as part of our plan.”
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