Howe Urges Gordon to Ignore Arsenal Transfer Talk

• Newcastle boss keen to avoid repeat of Isak saga
• Gordon in strong form ahead of Everton clash
• Magpies braced for Barcelona test in Champions League

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe has urged striker Anthony Gordon to block out speculation linking him with a summer move to Arsenal, insisting the forward must remain fully focused on the challenges ahead.

Reports on Friday suggested the 25-year-old, who scored four goals in last week’s Champions League play-off first-leg win over Qarabag, is being targeted by the title-chasing Gunners. With Newcastle still dealing with the fallout from Alexander Isak’s high-profile departure to Liverpool last summer, Howe admitted he could do without another prolonged transfer saga.

“I’m not sure there’s a lot I can do about that,” Howe said ahead of Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Gordon’s former club Everton. “I’ve not seen the story, so it’s news to me.

“But we’re mid-season, we’re in the middle of some of the biggest games of his career and who knows what’s going to happen internationally with him in the summer as well? He’s not got time to look left or right, he’s got to be fully focused on straight ahead and the next game and trying to be as good as he can be.”

Gordon, who signed a new long-term contract in October 2024, previously dismissed rumours of an imminent exit and will be hoping his current form earns him a place in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for this summer’s World Cup finals.

Howe is confident the winger will not be unsettled by persistent transfer talk.

“Only if he reads it, I suppose,” the 48-year-old added. “In this age, there’s always rumour and speculation.

“I don’t see probably 90% of it – I’m sure the players probably see more than I do – but it comes with the territory of being a top player. You’ve just got to put it out of your brain and focus on the football. There’s no time for distractions.”

Speaking before Newcastle learned their Champions League last-16 opponents – later confirmed as Barcelona – Howe was also asked why several of his players have recently been linked with moves away, including Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall, Malick Thiaw, Sandro Tonali and Nick Woltemade.

“You tell me,” he said. “It’s your industry that’s creating those stories. I think it’s irrelevant, really. It’s how the players take to that.

“If the players absorb it and it affects them, then of course that’s a negative. But I think our players are robust enough to ignore it.”