Chelsea ‘Rival’ Arsenal, Liverpool in Competitive Anthony Gordon Transfer Battle

An array of clubs are set to be involved in the Anthony Gordon sweepstake this summer, with Chelsea reportedly the latest to join the race to sign the England international.

Newcastle United are threatening stagnation with Eddie Howe in charge, having parted ways with star striker Alexander Isak late into last summer’s transfer window. While mitigation was supplied in various forms, Newcastle's bid to replace Isak has so far proven pretty disastrous.

In fact, there’s already talk of Yoane Wissa leaving the club, barely 12 months removed from his £55 million ($74.4 million) move.

If Newcastle are to rebuild ahead of the 2026–27 season, they’ll seek to sell early to give themselves plenty of time to bring in the right replacements. Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimarães are two more coveted assets the Tynesiders could part ways with, but Gordon currently looks the most certain to leave—and plenty of clubs are lining up for his signature.

Chelsea Join Hugely Competitive Race for Gordon’s Signature

Anthony Gordon — Gordon scored at Chelsea in Newcastle’s most recent Premier League win. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

Newcastle signed Gordon for £40 million ($54 million) from Everton back in 2023, and are said to be confident of banking a healthy profit if they strike a deal with one of the forward’s many potential suitors this summer.

The Magpies, currently 14th in the Premier League table, could reportedly be demanding as much as £75 million ($101 million) for their leading scorer’s services.

Arsenal, Liverpool and Bayern Munich have all been linked with a move, and now The Athletic have chucked Chelsea into the mix. The Blues’ transfer strategy has been the subject of opprobrium from supporters, and co-owner Behdad Eghbali recently suggested that an alteration in policy is on the cards.

Signing Gordon for big money would certainly fit Eghbali’s claim that Chelsea are poised to sign more “ready-made” stars, as opposed to less experienced talent. The Blues have stockpiled an uninspiring collection of wide players and need to particularly improve down the left, but a move for Gordon is reportedly dependent on whether they qualify for the Champions League.

As it stands, that’s unlikely, even if a sixth-place Premier League finish will be enough to qualify in the event of Aston Villa winning the Europa League.

Why Is Gordon So in Demand?

Plenty laughed when Newcastle spent as much as they did to sign Gordon three years ago, and there’s certainly been a level of surprise at just how in-demand the England international is heading into the summer window.

After notching 21 Premier League goal contributions during his first full season at St James’ Park, Gordon’s domestic productivity has gradually declined. However, the versatile forward scored 10 times in the Champions League this season, and was one of the top scorers in the competition at the time of Newcastle’s round of 16 exit.

He can certainly blow hot and cold in front of goal, with much of his ruthlessness this calendar year saved for 45 minutes in Baku. Still, clubs admire Gordon’s relentlessness in all phases, his willingness to penetrate behind defenses and the work he gets through out of possession.

While some are seemingly ambivalent towards Gordon, England manager Thomas Tuchel has previously been effusive in his praise: “He [Gordon] is a direct player, I think this is his biggest strength, to go direct and go again and again,” the German said last October (via FanSided).

"To have this repetition in his intensity. He just collects high intensity runs, he collects meters in sprints and this is so, so good."

Gordon will most likely compete with Barcelona’s Marcus Rashford for a starting spot at the 2026 World Cup, with a career-defining summer on the horizon.

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