Paris St-Germain on Tuesday, Real Madrid on Sunday and eyes on the Ballon d’Or ceremony on Monday.
It’s a fascinating week for Barcelona’s Anthony Gordon, whose team-mate Lamine Yamal and international captain Harry Kane are competing for the big individual prize.
Gordon played the full 90 minutes in Barcelona’s Champions League epic against PSG and is likely to have an important role in El Clasico. As for the Ballon d’Or, he’s not shy about his ambitions to be in the conversation for it one day.
“I’ve always dreamed of this since childhood,” he told the media at England’s latest camp. “I’ve never had a limit to what I can do in life, because I understand that the people who are there at one point were not there.
“I believe that anyone can achieve anything they put their mind to – they just need a lot of luck.
“Things like that are about preparation. When preparation meets luck, you get that kind of opportunity. So I’m trying to do everything I can to be the best player I can be. I hope I have a lot of luck and then we’ll see.”
His critics may say that the dream is fantastic. But Gordon’s confidence and improvement mindset has taken him to another level this year.
He was a surprise signing from Barcelona in May, given they could have snapped up his England team-mate Marcus Rashford for £26million after a successful loan spell. But their £69.3m outlay signaled their faith in 23-year-old Gordon’s potential.
Clever, Gordon went on to have a standout World Cup with England, scoring in the semi-final against Argentina and dethroning Rashford as his country’s first-choice left-back.
Anthony Gordon gives England the lead against Argentina in Atlanta (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Two assists on his Barça debut in August made him an instant hit with his new club’s fans. Has four assists in 10 La Liga games so far, with his first two goals for Barca coming after the last international break – when his three goals in three games for England included a superb breakaway effort against Spain.
The heights of Kane and Lamine Yamal are stratospheric, but Gordon sees Barcelona as the ideal place to continue climbing the ladder – and show Premier League watchers that there is far more quality to his game than some assume.
He is already feeling the evolution in his game. “Definitely,” was his response when asked by Sky Sports whether playing alongside the electric talents of teammates like Lamine Yamal and Raphinha would have an impact on him.
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Anthony Gordon opened his Barcelona account in a comfortable 3-0 win over Getafe, maintaining his fine early form in Spain.
“I played in a completely different style under Eddie Howe at Newcastle. We played very intense back-and-forth. It’s always been quite exciting games, whereas at Barca, the intensity is much slower because we control the ball so much and we’ve been quite dominant so far.
“I pride myself on having a high football IQ and making the right decisions. Sometimes maybe I should be more selfish as a player, but it’s not really my nature. So I think going to a team like Barcelona has really suited me.
“And maybe it’s highlighting strengths that people didn’t know I had or maybe overlooked.
“Because I’m fast and because I press, that’s the only thing people ever talk about, but I actually have a lot more to my game than those two things.”
The figures speak to the different role and demands Gordon now faces in Spain.
With Barca leading most of the games, he is getting the ball more and has more opportunities to show his threat. His stats for shots, chances created, take-ons and passes are all high. The drop in cross country reflects Barcelona’s different approach to Newcastle.
“He has speed. He can control the ball. He helps us a lot with his dribbling, always being able to create chances,” summarized Barça coach Hansi Flick.
Gordon, along with new signing Karim Adeyemi, are providing a solid option on the left for the German so far. They have allowed Raphinha to move to centre-forward, where he is posting stunning goalscoring figures, while Gordon reckons Lamine Yamal on the other wing is the best winger on the planet at the moment.
It all added up to a surprise attack on Barcelona – and a huge punch for Real Madrid’s defenders at Spotify’s Camp Nou on Sunday.
When the world watches El Clasico this weekend, Gordon will have the chance to show his rising stature among the superstars.
Follow Barcelona vs Real Madrid with our live blog on the Sky Sports site and app on Sunday; departure at 20.00.
