It’d be fair to say Anthony Gordon is yet to truly get going after his January move to Newcastle United from Everton.
While the winger is making all the right noises, the 22-year-old is still bedding in to Eddie Howe’s team and was unable to feature in the Carabao Cup final as he was cup-tied.
Clearly, the club rate him highly. Indeed, Newcastle tried to sign Gordon in the summer before paying £40m to bring him to St James’ Park, so it’s reasonable to assume he’s going to be afforded time to develop under Howe’s watch.
Still, it’s been a frustrating start to life on Tyneside, with the team struggling for goals.
Anthony Gordon injury confirmed
More frustratingly, the club confirmed Gordon was injured prior to Sunday’s win over Wolves.
Alexander Isak and Miguel Almiron both scored to seal a much-needed win for Howe’s side in the pursuit of Champions League football but they were without their big January signing.
Jacob Murphy started alongside Isak and Allan Saint-Maximin as Almiron and Callum Wilson dropped to the bench.
Before the game, the club tweeted: “Anthony Gordon is sidelined this afternoon due to an ankle injury. Wishing you a speedy recovery.”
Gordon’s got time
Such was the extent to which Newcastle went to sign Gordon, it’s unlikely anyone – internally at least – will be making any rash judgements.
While many of the club’s signings in the post-takeover era have hit the ground running, it’s important to remember the former Everton winger is still young and is getting used to entirely new surroundings.
The injury, of course, is frustrating but it’s all about building and getting into a position where he can impact games towards the end of the season.