Anthony Gordon missed Newcastle United’s 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth with a hip injury and not due to speculation surrounding his future, Eddie Howe insists.
The winger was absent from the starting XI following a week of speculation linking him with a summer exit, with Bayern Munich cited as a potential destination. The Athletic reported that there are plenty of suggestions around the industry that Bayern could be the direction of travel, but the Bundesliga club’s interest is not new, while Arsenal and Liverpool have also coveted him previously.
While Howe was unsure how long Gordon would be sidelined for, with a return against Arsenal next week not ruled out, his fellow England international Tino Livramento looks set for a spell out once again. The full-back was forced off with a thigh problem on Saturday as Newcastle suffered an eighth defeat in 11 Premier League matches and five in six top-flight games at St James’ Park.
“He missed training, I’m just trying to get my days right, I think Thursday and Friday, with a problem he picked up on Wednesday,” Howe said of Gordon during Saturday’s post-match press conference. “So we knew he wasn’t going to be ready.”
Gordon is among the key players who have been linked with an exit this summer, given Champions League football appears highly unlikely, but Howe played down suggestions that was the reason behind his absence.
“Absolutely,” Howe said, when asked if he would push back against suggestions questioning Gordon’s commitment. “(This) was an injury. He went for a scan on Thursday morning and it was clear he had an injury that would take him out.
“For Tino that’s a huge blow for him and for us.”
There was a seven-second pause from Howe later on during his press conference when he was asked if his players had the same “fire in their bellies” to succeed that the head coach insisted he has himself during his pre-match briefing on Friday.
Full-back Lewis Hall, meanwhile, was replaced at half-time for “tactical” reasons, according to Howe, rather than due to injury.