The emotional worlds of Cole Palmer and Anthony Gordon could not have been more different on Monday. While Palmer imposed himself in front of the eyes of national team coach Gareth Southgate, Gordon had to leave the field early
Monday night’s match between the two disappointments Chelsea and Newcastle (3:2) was certainly not of great sporting value – both teams are bobbing around in mid-table. Nevertheless, England coach Gareth Southgate took a seat in the stands at Stamford Bridge. The reason: the two shooting stars Cole Palmer and Anthony Gordon.
However, Southgate was not allowed to watch either of them for long. Gordon suffered an injury in the early stages but continued to play. After a duel with Marc Cucurella in the 33rd minute, the left winger came to a halt and grabbed his left knee. The team doctor’s drawer test showed that he was in pain. “I can’t say much about it, except that it was a knee injury. Strangely, there was no mechanism, there was no moment when he felt it,” Eddie Howe said in the Sky interview.
Howe reveals: “He was in a lot of pain “
How bad the injury is to the 23-year-old, who at least left the field on his own two feet when he was substituted, was of course not known by Howe shortly after the final whistle. “He was in a lot of pain,” the Magpies coach merely revealed.
Especially with the FA Cup quarter-final at Manchester City (Saturday, 6.30pm) – Newcastle’s last chance to win the title – the possible loss of the team’s second-highest scorer (nine league goals) is naturally very painful. But Gordon’s thoughts are more likely to be focused on his possible European Championship nomination. It was only on Thursday that the attacking player spoke to the Daily Mail about his dream: when asked by his girlfriend about booking a vacation, he replied: “Germany is very nice.”
Rival Palmer, on the other hand, isn’t thinking about the summer just yet. “I’m not really looking ahead. To be honest, I just want to play my soccer, take every game and we’ll see what happens in the summer,” explained Chelsea’s top scorer (eleven Premier League goals). Palmer should also postpone his vacation plans – especially after performances like Monday evening.
The left-footed striker was once again promoting himself ahead of his nomination for the upcoming international break on Thursday. For the fifth time this season, he set up a goal in a match and scored one himself – more than any other player in the league. “He’s fantastic and is maturing day by day,” enthused Mauricio Pochettino at the press conference.
Turnaround through transfer on deadline day
At the end of August, the 21-year-old himself had not thought it possible that he would be allowed to wear the Three Lions jersey again against Brazil (March 22) and Belgium (March 26): While still a Man City player, he had only made one brief appearance in the first three matchdays. “If you had told me at the start of the season that I had a chance of playing in the European Championship, I wouldn’t have believed you because of my situation,” said Palmer.
It was only Chelsea’s well-invested €46.7 million on the last day of the summer transfer window that led to the explosion in performance that Southgate will be keeping a close eye on.
