Club retain option to sign Rashford permanently for €30m but feel a move for Gordon may represent better long-term value
Barcelona have agreed a deal with Newcastle worth an initial €80m plus add-ons for forward Anthony Gordon.
The Catalan club had been exploring attacking reinforcements for several weeks and they see Gordon as a player capable of occupying the role filled this season by Marcus Rashford during his loan spell from Manchester United.
Gordon is admired by Barcelona’s head coach, Hansi Flick, and sporting director, Deco, and the club have already made contact with the player’s representatives.
Barcelona retain an option to sign Rashford permanently for €30m before 15 June, although the club believe a move for Gordon would represent better long-term value.
The fee agreed with Newcastle is substantially higher but Barcelona believe Gordon’s lower wage demands and the possibility of offering a longer contract would soften the financial impact through amortisation of the transfer fee.
Gordon’s future at Newcastle United had been the subject of growing uncertainty since the start of the season. Eddie Howe acknowledged this month that the winger had been left out of matchday squads because the club were “looking at the future”, while Bayern and Chelsea had monitored his situation closely.
Arsenal were also long-term admirers, though their summer priorities on the left side of attack remain unclear.
There had been a feeling around Newcastle that Bayern were leading the race for Gordon, but the Bundesliga champions are understood to have had reservations about meeting an €80m valuation and instead assessed alternative targets.
Newcastle have previously resisted interest in the player, including during discussions with Liverpool in 2024 over a proposed £75m move involving Joe Gomez heading in the opposite direction.
Gordon signed an improved contract at Newcastle in October 2024 but has continued to attract attention after another productive campaign. Despite early-season hip problems, he made 46 appearances in all competitions, scoring 17 goals and providing five assists, including 10 goals in 12 Champions League matches while alternating between the wing and a central attacking role.
The former Everton player was included in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad in March and has since been named in the manager’s 26-man squad for this summer’s World Cup. Gordon has made 152 appearances for Newcastle since joining from Everton in January 2023 for an initial £40m fee.
