Anthony Gordon has admitted that playing alongside Lamine Yamal and Raphinha "gives me more comfort" and makes him a better player, as the England forward prepares to line up with Barcelona's superstar attack against Aston Villa at Camp Nou tonight.
The 25-year-old, who joined Barcelona from Newcastle United in the summer, is part of the most prolific attack in Europe's top five leagues — 57 goals in 14 matches in all competitions, with Gordon contributing three goals and five assists. Either side of him, Yamal and Raphinha have scored 29 goals between them this season.
"They Do Something Special — It Makes Me Look Better"
Speaking to TNT Sports ahead of tonight's Champions League meeting with Villa, Gordon was strikingly honest about what life is like inside Hansi Flick's front three. "It gives me more comfort, of course, I get many more chances, so it definitely makes me a better player," he said. "They also make me a better player, through passing them the ball, and then they do something special. It obviously makes me look a lot better."
"But it gives me more comfort that sometimes if I'm not on the very, very top of my game, I have players next to me who are elite, and can change the game at any given moment."
Gordon admitted he sometimes cannot believe he is lining up for Barcelona, the club he dreamed of playing for from an early age, and revealed he sets aside 10 to 20 minutes every day to visualise, meditate and be calm. "I am truly grateful for my life, what I've created," he said. "But ultimately, now, like most humans, you get where you want to get to and then you just want more. So now I need goals, I need trophies, I need everything else that comes with it."
Flick, for his part, is delighted with his signing. Gordon waited until October for his first Barcelona goal, in the 3-0 win over Getafe, and has scored twice more since — including in Saturday's 6-1 thrashing of Alaves. "Nothing affects him," Flick said. "When he has the ball on the pitch he always has the confidence he needs. It's totally different than he expected — normally they don't train in Newcastle. But he's doing good. I'm very happy about his quality and impact in this team."
The Kane Path: Trophies First, Ballon d'Or After
Gordon has never hidden his personal ambition, and watching England captain Harry Kane become the first English Ballon d'Or winner since Michael Owen in 2001 has only sharpened it. His theory is simple: Kane's move abroad turned a great Premier League career into a Ballon d'Or career, because Bayern Munich added the trophies Tottenham never could.
"He was at Spurs for a long time and he had an unbelievable Premier League career, but because Spurs didn't win any trophies, it maybe didn't put him in that top, top bracket that he's in now," Gordon said. "I think his move to Bayern Munich has put him on another level because he's been able to add trophies. He gets to show his ability on the highest stages in the later rounds of the Champions League — and that's what these clubs do. That's why I've always dreamed of playing for this club, because everybody watches Barcelona."
Gordon knows the pressure that comes with it. He was a hero of the Newcastle side that ended a 70-year wait for a trophy by beating Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final, but at Barcelona silverware is an expectation, not a bonus. "I really enjoy this type of challenge," he said. "I really enjoy the pressure it comes with. I'm here to win."
So What: Villa at Camp Nou Is the Next Test
Tonight is exactly the kind of stage Gordon is talking about. Barcelona sit eighth in the league phase on six points after defeat by Paris Saint-Germain, while Unai Emery's Villa arrive with a perfect three wins from three. Gordon is named in the 23-man squad announced by FC Barcelona today and is expected to start alongside Yamal and Raphinha, with the teenager one goal away from taking Kylian Mbappe's record for Champions League goals before the age of 20 outright.
The flip side is at the other end of the pitch: Flick must again field a makeshift defence, with Jules Kounde, Eric Garcia, Andreas Christensen and Xavi Espart all still out. Gordon felt the full force of this Barcelona side's ceiling and floor in El Clasico last month, when he played 86 minutes in the 2-1 defeat by Real Madrid. If the front three click tonight, Villa's perfect record is in serious danger — and Gordon's comfort blanket becomes a statement win.
Beyond the Final Whistle: There is something refreshing about a big-money forward admitting his superstar team-mates make him look better — most players would rather pretend the opposite. But Gordon's honesty is also his strategy. He has mapped Kane's route from trophyless brilliance to the Ballon d'Or and is following it step by step: dream club, biggest stage, trophies first. The medals will decide whether he is remembered as a passenger in a great attack or a driver of it — and nights like tonight, against a perfect Villa side, are where that reputation gets built.
Can Gordon follow Kane all the way to a Ballon d'Or — or will he always be the supporting act to Yamal and Raphinha? Have your say in the comments.
