- Gordon slammed for poor performance against Japan
- Newcastle winger still expected to go to World Cup
- Starting position now open with Rashford also in contention
Newcastle United forward Anthony Gordon has faced backlash from the media after he featured heavily in England’s disappointing 1-0 friendly defeat against Japan on Tuesday.
With Harry Kane out injured, Thomas Tuchel deployed Gordon in what was set up to be a fluid front four.
The 25-year-old occupied the left-hand side, a more familiar stomping ground than the central position Eddie Howe has used him in this season.
But his performance has drawn a rather unsavoury reaction, with multiple outlets condemning his showing as lacklustre.
Gordon Called out by English Media
A plethora of the country’s largest media outlets have weighed in on Gordon against Japan, and it’s safe to say there weren’t many glowing reports among them.
The best of which came in the form of a 5/10 from the BBC, in which they described an ‘energetic performance’ but ‘not many moments to threaten the Japan defence’.
Standard Sport also gave a 5/10, saying, “A threatening runner who found some nice passes but also gave the ball away and did not press his cause to start over Rashford.”
The worst of the reviews came from The Sun. They gave Gordon a dismal 3/10 and said, “His final ball wasn’t good enough, and Mitoma completely outshone him from the opposition.” They also stated that, given Rashford’s ‘constant threat’ against Uruguay, the left wing position in Tuchel’s XI has gotten ‘a whole lot closer’.
It was a torrid night all in for England, who failed to muster any sort of threat across the 90 minutes. Gordon did nothing to address those problems, leading to scathing media ratings.
Gordon Should Still Make the Plane
Even with the poor showing on Tuesday, Gordon’s place in Tuchel’s World Cup squad is likely safe.
The winger-turned-centre-forward has become an integral part of the England setup since the German took over. Showing on multiple occasions over the last year, the sort of thing he can bring to the squad.
Despite his place being almost certain, there are no guarantees he will start when the opening game against Croatia comes around in June.
His direct rival for that spot is the aforementioned Rashford, who is currently playing for Spanish giants Barcelona.
Gordon Most Used Newcastle Hopeful
Gordon was the most used of the five Newcastle players who remained with the squad for the second game of the break.
Of the other four, Harvey Barnes was the only Magpies player to remain as an unused substitute. But the winger did get minutes in the previous outing against Uruguay, where he got an assist for Ben White’s goal.
Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento both entered the field in the 59th minute, with the fullback pair also likely already taking a seat on the plane in the summer.
Dan Burn was a late arrival to the squad and featured for the last ten minutes of the game. His fate remains up in the air, with Tuchel having to make a decision as to whether his experience and character is worthy enough to take him to America.
