Anthony Gordon: Is Everton youngster the answer to Chelsea's attacking problems?

Goodison Park held its breath when the ball dropped.

The waspish presence of Anthony Gordon appeared to have been miscalculated by Steve Cook when he failed to get a head on Dean Henderson's cross.

As the Gwladys Street bayed for Gordon to produce a finish or even round the Forest goalkeeper, his execution would let him down as Henderson

It summed up his day. The club's first point of the season came on Saturday, but he was unable to score. There is a lot of work to be done, but Gordon wants to do it.

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He said that Anthony has a hunger as a young boy. He would like to finish his work.

The goals will come as a young player who gave us so much last year in his output develops. It can take a little while to get that in your game.

To expect some of the greatest players to plunder goals at 21-22 is not the norm. Occasionally, there is an exception, No 9s.

Anthony has a lot of strings to his bow and he's going to score a goal.

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Gordon's future has been the subject of a lot of speculation over the last week. The dynamic 21-year-old will be paid up to 60 million dollars by the Blues.

He would be moving from one club to another without a recognised goal scorer.

In the defeat against Leeds, the split forwards were played down the left and right channels with Mason Mount told to make runs through the middle.

The German's vision nearly paid off on a couple of occasions during the first half at Elland Road with the front three combining for Mount to be denied by Illan Meslier while Sterling was thwarted by an offside flag having cut into his right foot for the second time in the

Gordon's final product and ability to stay on his feet were questioned early on in his career.

This was always going to be an acid test for the team given the nature of their opening two games. They weren't going to pass it.

An unconvincing win atEverton was followed by a frustrating draw with Spurs which sparked the strikers debate. Gordon knows how to fit square pegs in round holes, but he is still trying to find his best position.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was given a rough ride by Gordon in the 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Reds.

The make-up of the squad is going to be a problem come the end of the transfer window, but it already feels like the club are playing catch-up.

There are games on the board that can't be thrown away. Gordon has only just passed his 50th game in the top flight, but the mood among supporters has already changed.

One of their own but no longer a kid, the player needs to relish the increased responsibility. There is room for a new talisman with Richarlison and Calvert-Lewin out of the picture.

Salomon Rondon was given a start in the draw with Forest, but the manager abandoned the use of a focal point within 10 minutes of the second half, preferring to play a more fluid front three.

The emphasis has been on pressing the opposition despite the fact that they have been told to interchange and take turns. The energy behind the initial press has aided in the production of 27 high turnovers so far.

When Richarlison was in the side, the minutes went from 7.4 to nine. The use of two additional subs is already having an impact on the wayEverton and others are going about their intensity levels from the off.

In the first two games of the season, they have made 32 high turnovers, compared to 8.1 last season. Gordon has the same qualities that would make him an asset to any top side, especially one targeting young English talent as a central component of their transfer policy.

An improved contract has been on the table for a number of weeks that still hasn't been signed. Gordon's last contract was signed two years ago and the club want to double down on their stance that the player is not for sale.

In the wake of the loss at Leeds, new owner Todd Boehly has been given an indirect message that more business will need to be done.

The transfer period is still open and we need to focus on what we have and what we can do.

We don't give goals away from big mistakes. The thing is what it is. This is the group of people. The squad we have gives me energy. If we don't make it better, we fight with what we have.

The heavy reverse highlighted the need for an out-and-out goal scorer.

With Patrick Bamford out of the picture, the team used a more advanced position with Rodrigo playing as a No 10 but popping up all over the place.

The argument in favor of Gordon was strengthened by the fact that they were outrun by more than 10 km.

In the first three weeks of the season, it has been said that if only a £100m forward was available, it would be a different story.

For now, Gordon's best years are ahead of him at Goodison Park, according to the locals. The two years left on Richarlison's current contract means that he won't be getting a new one.

Gordon's attitude and commitment to the cause couldn't be faulted, even though he wasn't included in the squad for the game against Saints.

Virtually everything he tried didn't work out, but it wasn't because he didn't try hard.

Gordon was the first player to have five shots on target in a game, but not score, since Opta began collecting such data.

For as long as Gordon remains at the club, he will be helped to become an efficient goal scorer.

Gordon's finishing will be improved in the next phase. The manager knows a lot about this because he was a prolific goal scorer himself.

During his 13-year spell with the London club, he became their record scorer, after joining the club at the age of 22.

He isn't sure if he would have hit the ground running if he moved to the modern game at the same age.

"If I was 20 years old, I wouldn't have gotten into a modern-day team with the way I was playing," he said. It would have been necessary for me to go there and get into the team.

I wasn't confident in my ability to rack up big numbers until I was in my 20's.

It is a process and players can improve on it by working time and time again to get better at it.

The more they see that work, the more confident they are. We work on it with attacking players.

There was at least some encouragement in the way Gordon performed. He didn't hide when he showed for the ball at times, as on a couple of occasions in the first half.

In front of the Gwladys Street in May of last year, Ross Barkley scored a winning goal in front of the crowd in his final game for the club. He was given an ultimatum by his boss and his celebrations were subdued.

He would miss the first half of the next season due to an injury, and then he would join the Blues in January of the following year. It's fair to say that he hasn't caught fire, with his name not in the discussion for the World Cup. He played for England in October.

Since being surplus to requirements, he has been offered around to clubs, but he has not scored a league goal. Gordon cannot allow King's Road to swallow up his career.

Gordon was part of the youngest starting XI in the history of the premier league in June 2020 and he had already shown a maturity beyond his years.

At the peak of the Pandemic, he moved out of his family home in order to not expose himself to Paul's vulnerable immune system and went on an army camp with a personal trainer.

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Gordon stated in an interview with Sky Sports that he wanted to become a premier league player. It pushed me to my limits when I was up early in the morning.

Gordon is trying to decide if his own ambitions can be matched by the team he supports.

The player has been at the club for a long time. Gordon's goals for the club have largely had a degree of good fortune, but before he moved to west London, he made 150 league appearances, more than any other player.

He scored the first of his two strikes against the Seagulls last season, with Richarlison's shot going in off Gordon's heels, while the only other time he scored in the league was against the Whites.

Gordon said during the interview that he was reading a mind management programme that helps elite athletes to conquer their fears and operate with control, focus and confidence.

It's teaching me how to balance the good and bad voices in my head, so that I don't get left out.

Gordon may be in the same situation as he is in, trying to make the right decision for his career. If a player is unwilling to sign a new deal, thenEverton must consider what's best for them

At the final whistle last Saturday, he applauded those who had stayed behind in the stands, but there was no suggestion that he was waving goodbye, as he did at the last whistle at the previous game.

Forest's fast start to life back on England's top table ignites a fear among fans that this could be the yearEverton are squeezed off it

Keeping hold of Gordon is central to their hopes, but they could be tested by their own attacking need in the final week of the window.