England thank Barcelona! The Barca star still without a club goal leads his country to a historic 7-0.. and Tuchel: he has reached another level
Barcelona paid around 70 million euros to sign him and he has yet to score in a Barca shirt, but with his national team he is turning into an unstoppable star, so much so that the press there has started talking about a “renaissance”, and crediting Barcelona for it.
A historic night ended in a 7-0 rout, with numbers almost no player has reached in a decade, and the national team coach himself came out to say the Barca star “has reached another level”.
The star in question is England winger Anthony Gordon, 25, who helped England crush Croatia 7-0 in the Nations League with a goal and an assist, as reported by Spanish newspapers Sport and Mundo Deportivo.
Gordon created, with real quality, the move that led to Jude Bellingham’s goal for 2-0, then appeared in the box to head home Jarell Quansah’s cross for the third, in a game where Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka scored twice each, along with Bellingham and Morgan Rogers.
England coach Thomas Tuchel said after the game: “Now he plays with much more aggression, with more confidence. I see a player full of confidence, of belief. He has reached another level,” adding: “He has been very decisive in the three games.”
Gordon has scored in all three of England’s Nations League games, against the Czech Republic, Spain and Croatia. The FA also confirmed that he is, along with Harry Kane, the only player to be directly involved in a goal in five consecutive England appearances in the last ten years, with four goals and two assists.
The English press celebrated his display. Sky Sports called him “the excellent Gordon”, while Football365 placed him among Tuchel’s “Fantastic Four” with Kane, Bellingham and Saka. Harry Kane said the four attackers can swap positions and that “Ant can play as a nine”.
One striking stat: Gordon’s goal against Croatia was his second consecutive header for England, even though he had played 248 club games for Everton, Preston, Newcastle and Barca without scoring a single headed goal.
Gordon told The Guardian a few days ago: “I pride myself on having a high football IQ and making the right decisions,” adding: “Going to a team like Barcelona has really suited me” and “my game has a lot more to offer”.
At Barcelona, Gordon is still waiting for his first goal, but he has four assists in La Liga, a number only Lamine Yamal (6) has bettered, and he is the squad’s second most frequent sprinter per game (20), behind Raphinha.
Gordon still has one more game with England before returning to Barcelona, against the Czech Republic on Tuesday at Wembley. Good news for England, and for Hansi Flick too.
