"Not a star": Spanish newspapers begin criticizing Anthony Gordon!

Barcelona has managed to win all seven of their La Liga matches this season—achieving a perfect record of 21 points out of a possible 21—while securing emphatic victories and conceding very few goals.

Most of the players who joined Barcelona have delivered exactly what was expected of them; however, a few are currently facing pressure from the press. Among them is English winger Anthony Gordon, who—despite not scoring—has put in distinguished performances.

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Anthony Gordon is putting in a good performance so far

Back in July, the 25-year-old made the move from St James' Park to the Camp Nou, and he began his first domestic season outside English football by providing two assists against Elche. From that point on, the £70million signing has added two more assists to his tally, with his new club winning all eight of their matches across all competitions and finding the net four or more times in six of those fixtures.

Despite Flick relying heavily on him since his arrival from Newcastle United, the English winger has not started every match; notably, he did not start in the Champions League game against Feyenoord that ended in a 5–1 victory.

In the 3-1 win, England's Gordon found little favour with the Spanish press, who were anything but impressed by his display — especially with his fellow attackers stealing the spotlight.

Spanish newspapers criticize Gordon's performance

Mundo Deportivo was perhaps the most critical—and the harshest—regarding Anthony Gordon. Raphinha, formerly of Leeds United, was the man of the moment against Sevilla, netting all three goals and bringing his league tally to 12 for the season. While he dominated the headlines, *Mundo Deportivo* took aim at Gordon, suggesting he lacks genuine star quality.

Summing up Gordon's display in a single word, the outlet chose: "Incomplete." The report went on: "He is a tactical blessing but being an attacker as he is, he's lacking that spark that distinguishes a star from a good player.

"He missed chances which he pursued with more passion than finesse. Hansi Flick rought on Adeyemi on the left wing, moving Gordon to centre-forward to try and find that elusive goal.

As for the AS, the newspaper criticized the English striker’s performance in a lighter way, stating, “Nothing came off for him despite his efforts. If there is one thing to be said in his favour, it is that he never stops plugging away — though luck in front of goal continues to elude him. For a short stretch he was deployed as a false nine, with Lamine Yamal and Adeyemi feeding him from wide areas.

"Gordon had time to miss two clear-cut chances, demonstrating his ongoing goal drought. But Sevilla had no chance in the second half, ultimately overwhelmed by a Raphinha-led offensive onslaught."

Hazem Mlhem |

Editorar, en

Hazem Mlhem est un rédacteur sportif expérimenté, animé par une passion pour le football africain.

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