Paul Merson says Newcastle have a 22-year-old who’s ‘improving week on week’

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Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon is one of the players Paul Merson has praised ahead of the Magpies’ upcoming Premier League clash.

The pundit, writing on the Sky Sports website, says the 22-year-old Newcastle ace is “improving week on week”.

Merson also praised several other Magpies players, such as Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak, and lauded Eddie Howe’s work at St James’ Park too.

Gordon is going from strength to strength this season after his £45million move to Newcastle at the start of the calendar year.

As a manager, Howe likes to give his new recruits time to get used to their new surroundings, and that was the case with the Everton academy graduate too.

Gordon made 16 appearances for Newcastle last season, 12 of which were off the bench. He then went on to shine for England’s Under-21s in their triumphant European championship campaign.

This season, Gordon is showing everyone what he’s capable of. He has 14 outings under his belt, of which nine have come in the Premier League.

And in the top flight, he has three goals and two assists in 2023-24, helping Newcastle creep up the table, where they currently sit sixth.

‘You cannot talk highly enough’

Merson loves what he’s been seeing not just from Gordon, but from everyone connected with the Magpies.

“From top to bottom, the club have done everything right so far,” he wrote.

“The new owners have not just come in and bought superstar after superstar to rock the boat. They have brought in quality players like Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak.

“There are not many players that have come in and flopped. Anthony Gordon is also one that is improving week on week.

“They could have got lazy and just spent a load of money on big-time players, bringing in £100m, £120m players with the money they have.

“They didn’t and they have looked at players to suit the way they want to play. You cannot talk highly enough about the recruitment at the club and you can’t say that about every club in the Premier League.

“Howe also improves players and again, you can’t say that about every manager in the top flight. He has been outstanding in his time at Newcastle.”

Gordon a great acquisition for Newcastle

It’s great seeing Gordon living up to his potential after a rocky end to his time at Everton. There’s definitely a player in there and Howe is bringing the best out of him.

This is what Howe does. Rather than throwing them in at the deep end, he helps them find their feet in their new surroundings, and then coaches them to the next level.

Gordon is one of many great acquisitions for Newcastle and it’ll be exciting to see how he continues to develop as a player.