Anthony Gordon's 'not lying' admission about unseen Newcastle chat after 'hard' Everton transfer

Anthony Gordon has revealed some sound advice from Kieran Trippier served him well after the Newcastle United forward initially struggled with the expectation of trying to be the 'main guy'.

Gordon was short of 'high-end fitness' when the forward completed his £45m mid-season move in 2023 because of the difference in intensity between training at Everton and being put through his paces at Newcastle. The Scouser was, effectively, playing catch up from the off and went on to suffer an ankle injury.

Trippier noticed that Gordon was 'struggling a little bit in the sense of fitness' and when the 23-year-old did play, he was 'maybe trying a bit too hard'. Gordon, for instance, uncharacteristically failed to hit the target after overthinking when played through one-on-one in games against Manchester City and Southampton.

READ MORE: Man United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe slams 'absurd' FFP rule change that could help Newcastle

READ MORE: Sir Jim Ratcliffe makes 'unpopular' admission as Newcastle hold firm with Manchester United

Trippier went on to take Gordon aside when the pair were away with their families in Dubai at the end of the campaign and advised his team-mate not to take a break once he returned from the under-21s Euros. Trippier told Gordon to instead come straight back to Newcastle in an effort to hit the ground running in pre-season. Gordon did just that.

"To be fair, he was not lying with any of that," Gordon told talkSPORT. "We were on holiday in Dubai and he was right.

"When I first arrived in Newcastle, it was hard because I had a lot of expectation I felt, which wasn't real but created in my own head, and I was trying to be the main guy and everyone was in too good form for that to happen anyway.

"We were on holiday together and he gave me some advice, which he always has. He's a great leader, a great guy, and just good to be around. He's so good on the pitch. He's always talking. I didn't take any days off and it's definitely served me well."

Gordon, who was the player of the tournament when England won the under-21 Euros, smashed the fitness test on his first day back at Benton and went on to have a productive pre-season and campaign as a whole. Gordon was directly involved in 21 Premier League goals in his first full season at Newcastle and also won six penalties in the top-flight - more than any other player by a distance.

That form earned Gordon senior international recognition and the forward was named in the England squad alongside Trippier for Euro 2024. Although Gordon was not called upon for England's group opener against Serbia, the Newcastle star has vowed to be 'ready' whenever he is called upon.

"I'll be ready to go regardless of my role, whether it's now or the final," he added ahead of the Three Lions' clash against Denmark tonight. "I'll be ready for whenever I'm needed. If that's a start or coming off the bench, I'll come on and make an impact at some point because I'm sure I'll be needed at some point.

"I've got a lot of attributes that some players haven't got and which we will need at times so I'm in a place where I'm just staying mentally prepared and always ready to come on and perform."