Anthony Gordon will be key man as Barcelona set for Champions League glory | OneFootball

We imagine ourselves gathered in the seating area of Alan Partridge’s caravan, reeling off spurious facts and being corrected by the increasingly frustrated protagonist when we think of our historic takes on Barcelona’s £69m summer signing. “Stop getting Gordon wrong!” we’re told.

He’s been a man in demand throughout his career. After one full season of senior football for Everton, Chelsea had bids of £40m and then £45m rejected by the Toffees in the summer of 2022.

In January 2023 he moved to Newcastle for £40m. After his first full season at St James’ Park, Gordon very nearly moved to Liverpool for £75m. This summer he went to actual Barcelona.

Why would Chelsea be offering £45m for a player with six goal contributions in 35 games? Why would Newcastle pay £40m for a player with nine goal contributions in 51 games? Why would Liverpool pay £75m when they already had a superior left winger in Luis Diaz? The exact same question could have been asked of Bayern Munich when their interest emerged this summer.

And finally, why were Barcelona baulking at £26m for Rashford but were more than happy to pay nearly three times that sum for Gordon?

He’s proving us wrong again. In four La Liga games he has five assists, the standout of which was a superb back heel for Raphinha against Rayo Vallecano.

“His speed, his intensity… it’s all very good for us and exactly what we were looking for in him,” said head coach Hansi Flick after Gordon’s first start against Athletic Club, during which the Nou Camp crowd were heard loud and clear chanting his name during a break in play.

Gordon responded by tapping the Barcelona crest on his chest before being told by his teammates – according to The Athletic – that such adoration so early in his career with the Catalans was ‘not normal’.

Conducting his first press conference in Spanish won’t have hurt; neither will his commitment to speak to the fans in Catalan. It’s been a brilliant start thanks to his work on and off the pitch. But not perfect.

“I think as a striker, from his side, you want to score goals. He has had some chances and he missed them,” Flick said ahead of Barcelona’s Champions League clash with Feyenoord.

Rested for the game, Gordon watched his replacement – Karim Adeyemi – score a quite brilliant goal to put Barcelona 2-0 up. The summer signing from Borussia Dortmund cut in from the left and curled a shot into the top corner from outside the box. “Eat my goal!” he might have said.

Raphinha had scored his seventh goal and later got his eighth of the season. Lamine Yamal scored a free-kick and Gabriel Jesus got off the mark for his new club by flicking Yamal’s delightful cross into the far corner. It’s the fourth time in five games that they’ve scored five goals.

With Rodri now stationed at the base of midfield behind Dani Olmo and Pedri, both making angles and finding unlikely passes, there’s a case to made for Barcelona having the best midfield and forward line in Europe this season.

Doubts over their ability to stay the course in the Champions League will be stem from their defence. Andreas Christensen – fine servant, top professional and all that – should not be at the heart of a defence planning to go all the way. Particularly when they look to play offside on the halfway line.

On several occasions they were sliced open by Feyenoord players running through them from deep. Stiffer opposition will highlight those deficiencies and make them pay.

But they are at least among the challengers and can we just shock you? Gordon will be key to the challenge.

He came on with half an hour to play here and while he failed to add to his assists haul and is still waiting for a first goal, it was the cameo of a footballer very much at ease with his surroundings; someone who knows where to go and what to do in Flick’s demanding, high-pressing system, encouraged by a fanbase more than ready to applaud him at any given opportunity.

What has always been and will remain a suspect defence has been rendered even less of a factor this season for this ‘we’ll just score more than you’ outfit, thanks in no small part to Gordon and his near perfect start in Flick’s imperfect but always entertaining Barcelona machine.