First, it suggests that the Newcastle hierarchy have learned some important lessons from the way in which Isak’s exit ruined last summer. Whereas repeated attempts were made to convince Isak to remain at St James’ Park, Newcastle’s executive team accepted the inevitable once Gordon made it clear that his head had been turned.
And whereas Newcastle spent ages negotiating with Liverpool over Isak, trying to squeeze every last penny out of the deal but ultimately limiting their own ability to reinvest the money successfully, discussions with Barcelona were pretty much tied up within a day. Perhaps Newcastle could have secured a slightly better deal by raising their asking price or trying to play Barcelona off against Bayern Munich. As they have rightly concluded, though, it is far better to get everything sorted at the start of the summer so the work on what happens next can begin.
There has been no real weeping or wailing over Gordon’s departure, which is also telling. First, the laidback reaction of most Newcastle fans suggests the club have finally got across the message that selling big-name players need not be a disaster. The financial restrictions that govern both English and European football dictate that clubs have to be good sellers, and that moving players on has to be part of any successful recruitment model.
There is more to the lack of any real angst over Gordon’s exit than simply an acknowledgement that all clubs have to sell every now and then, though. Newcastle fans are not too worried about Gordon leaving because while the 25-year-old has had some very good moments as a Newcastle player, he has always come a fair way short of establishing himself as a club great. Isak felt pretty much irreplaceable, as has proved to be the case. Gordon feels anything but.
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The winger arrived amid a considerable fanfare in January 2023, having forced his way out of Everton in order to push through a move to St James’. His £45m fee was proof of Newcastle’s ambition as they looked to kick on under their new Saudi Arabian owners, but in hindsight, his first half-season set the tone for much of what was to follow. His first four appearances were as a substitute, he suffered an ankle injury that sidelined him for the best part of a month, he complained when he was subbed as a substitute at Brentford and he didn’t score his first goal until the final game of the season. Not exactly a game-changer.
There were times over the course of the next three seasons when Gordon did hit the heights that were hoped of him. He leaves Newcastle having scored 39 goals in 152 appearances, a more than acceptable return for a player who spent the vast majority of his time on the wing.
He delivered some dazzling performances and scored some crucial goals – the winner against Arsenal in November 2023, the goals in both legs of the Carabao Cup semi-final with the Gunners that were so crucial to taking Newcastle to Wembley, the ten Champions League goals last season that threatened to make him the leading scorer in Europe.
Yet for every high there was a low – the games when he would go missing, the reluctance to play on the right-hand side that even Eddie Howe was forced to acknowledge in public, the sense that the Liverpudlian always felt there was another move coming, another club he deemed more suitable to his talents than Newcastle.
In fairness to Gordon, the farcical episode that saw him offered to Liverpool as Newcastle desperately tried to avoid breaking PSR rules in the summer of 2024 was a turning point. The Magpies were willing to sell Gordon before bundling Elliot Anderson off to Nottingham Forest to solve their problems, so they could hardly complain when the winger started to get itchy feet of his own.
By the second half of last season, it had become clear that the end was nigh. Newcastle are losing an extremely talented player, as confirmed by Gordon’s place in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad. There is every chance he will be a huge success at the Nou Camp.
They are not waving goodbye to an all-time great though, and on the evidence of last season, when Gordon’s impressive European contributions masked a series of thoroughly underwhelming domestic displays, it should not be impossible for them to replace the winger. Especially with all summer to firm up their plans.