Rising star Gordon handed new contract by Everton

Anthony Gordon has extended his stay at Goodison until 2025.

Another 5-year deal, we've got a supreme optimist handing out these contracts.

It would seem so, Dave; however, after this transfer window is over, I would think there will be very few arrivals in the next few years, save to replace those who become too old or their contracts are time served.

Good. This is the type of news we need. Young lad risen through the academies and I hope that he continues to learn from the experienced players we are hopefully signing.

Definitely not the finished article and needs to bulk up a bit, (too easily eased off the ball), but really like him and wish him well.

He has got massive promise, has done well for the first team and deserves his pay rise. This locks him in to proving he is good enough to be a starter when the new players come in. We will be guaranteed a decent fee if he ever moves on too, so I think it makes some sense.

Patrick (3), yes that makes sense but I think you have got to make these young players earn these long contracts. Anthony will be a millionaire in two or three years of this contract and good luck to him, but a 3-year contract, in my opinion, would give him the extra incentive to continue to work harder at his game and make him a better player.

The 5-year contract could make him think he has already achieved his goal, although I don't know the lad and maybe he has got the strength of character, ambition and determination to strive to establish himself as a good Premier League player. I'd like to believe he has.

It makes perfect sense commercially to tie our quality younger players like Gordon on long term contracts. Dortmund were attempting to sign him 18 months ago for a very good reason.

I'd have said getting him on a lower wage (relatively speaking) for five years is more commercially viable than that wage which needs renegotiating in a year or two as the contract gets close to expiry, meaning his value decreases and wage demands increase. Reckon it's good business and if he lives up to the promise shown so far I hope he is one of those rare breeds - a one club player.

As Steve @7 says, it makes sense to tie these lads down, especially if they have shown signs of being a gem.

Having said that, I must say I have been a little underwhelmed by Anthony's performances in the first team, from the chances he has been given.

Excuses can be, the season has been disjointed for all, the reconvening behind closed doors doesn't generate the same atmosphere. Although, if we manage to land our well-mooted targets, where will Anthony fit in? The other side of the coin may be that he has to try even harder with competition for places.

Either way, Carlo must have seen a lot more than we have at Finch Farm, and enough to have convinced whoever dishes out these contracts to persuade the lad to sign.

Don't let us down, Anthony, and don't let it get you down if you are seeing more of the bench than you would prefer, but you come across as a decent level-headed sort, so I doubt whether that will happen. Learn from these that (hopefully) are coming in.

Once he adjusts to the pace of the Premier league, he will be a top player, no doubts. Rate of progression, slope of the curve upwards is more than any other player in the U23s.

Already better than Bernard in 2020, how long could we go on without paying him more?

5 years, why not? He's ambitious, clearly a massive Evertonian, and I'm sure the contract will get upgraded again before even 3 years from today, so 3- or 4- or 5-year contracts wouldn't matter, I reckon. He'll be too good to keep on these wages, whatever they are, and will go up again, deservedly, within a year or two.

May I be the first to say:

"WTF???
5 year contract for a 19 year old?
League 1 player at best
What has he ever won in his career?
The world has gone mad
We thought Osman was light weight, this guy makes Osman look like Arnold Schwarzenegger
Everton have been taken to the cleaners again by greedy agents
Moshiri is a fool
Brands out
Kenwright out
It is all Hibbert's fault
etc, etc."

Dave Abrahams @6 Anthony himself says in his article that he is not the finished article and never will be as he knows he will keep on learning. This is great news.

But seriously, Gordon's this statement caught my eye, talking about Carlo Ancelotti: "He tests me every day and doesn't allow me to be comfortable".

I think behind his affable exterior, Carlo is a very demanding manager, and it must be an absolute privilege for youngsters like Gordon to learn from and try to impress this guy. He will not tolerate mediocrity, and players like Gordon, Kean, Davies, Holgate, Branthwaite, Kenny, Gibson, Adeniran, Calvert-Lewin, Simms, etc will all benefit massively during Ancelotti's tenure here.

Good luck to young Gordon, I wish him a great career with Everton.

Ajay, you left out Koeman, Mike Walker and Heysel. Apart from that great effort.

How on earth do people find the negative in this?

The lad is of obvious quality, if we gave him just 3 years and he has an excellent season this season, then the talk would be of how he only has 2 years left and how the vultures are circling.

While most lads spent lockdown on video games, then went off sunning themselves over cocktails after the season ended, this lad stayed and worked with his Personal Trainer.

He's the real deal and I'm made up we've got him tied down.

Lots of 5-year deals being dished out these days, maybe Brands will get his 5-year deal at a much-improved salary soon... well deserved, of course!

Excellent. Well done, young man.

A deal that makes sense, but all these 5-year contract extensions are just like new signings. (Why is my head telling me this?)

This bodes well and not only does it give us an insight into the workings of the training regime but it also confirms to those nay-sayers who like to slag off our ex-players that Ferguson is doing a good job.

I hope he goes on to be an Everton legend.

Fair deuce, young Gordon. I think we will see his game time increase this season. And he will get more comfortable.

Off topic but it's the latest thread. It makes me nervous how long Everton are in finalising deals.

Rumours of Von de Beek to Man Utd yesterday and within a few hours medical completed, Eze to Crystal Palace the same.

I hate the waiting game.

Bobby (12), yes, I read that, and no player is ever the finished article, no matter how good they are, they can always improve.

I was made up to read Anthony say that and I hope he does what he says and continues to improve.

I've been watching him since he was 16 and I know his undoubted skills and ability, and I can tell you that there is a lot more to Anthony's game than he shown so far. That will come, hopefully, the more he plays.

I think he is doing what he is told to do, at the moment. If and when he is let off the lease, he will have fans drooling, and I know he will do that whether the contract is for 3 or 4 years. But I think I am allowed to say that I would not give any young player a 5-year contract, unless, of course he was another Wayne Rooney, and they only come round every blue moon.

As we all know (and the players do too) contracts, on the whole, don't mean much these days.

It does, however, prevent the possibility of Anthony being "stolen" away on the cheap should he really push on in the next year or two.

If he does (push on) then the club keep him or get a good price because he has x number of years left on his contract. If he doesn't then the club may choose to sell him anyway.

It doesn't state how much salary he will be getting, and nor should it IMO.

This has to be the template for us going forward, by giving Gordon a 5-year deal, it must give a big lift to those young players to see him succeed in getting such a long contract.

What is most unusual is when clubs get very high profile successful manager, that usually signals big money buys to the exclusion of the young players at the club. But Ancelotti has shown great faith in the young players, especially Gordon and Branthwaite, giving them their Everton debuts.

He has also given Calvert-Lewin, Davies and Holgate the chance to cement themselves in the first team.

Good news.

On a slightly different note, I read that AS Monaco have joined the "transfer race" for Doucouré... and also that we had an offer rejected for Barcelona right-back Emerson.

Not such good news...

It would be nice to have a few of our own youngsters make the big time and with Everton. I always feel that, given another time, Rooney would have been so vital to Everton and not Manure.

However having seen the underachievers coming and going since Rooney burst onto the scene it would be a breath of fresh air to see some new faces make it.

Alas the Premier League is rife with overpriced imports but there are one or two homegrown gems with various clubs showing that the Brits can compete with the best of them so hopefully clubs will not mortgage the house to sign players from outside.

Antony Gordon showed along with Branthwaite that they have great potential and I do hope they get more chances to show it.

Ajay @13 - I think you're right about the respect the players have for the manager (though some did their best in the season run-in to show they have no respect for the club).

I think during lockdown there was some social-distanced interview between Ancelotti, Kaka and a host on the AC Milan website and it was abundantly clear that Kaka had all the time in the world for his 'Meester'.

Anthony Gordon is called the 'Ginger Messi' but under his meester's careful tutelage he could become our 'Ginger Kaka'.

But, on the other hand, I thought Osman was class... so forget it.

Nothing but respect for the lad.

Good news and thanks. I'm sure Branthwaite will soon be offered an improved deal too.

Far more sensible than Keane's (enough said on that one) reward and although I don't agree with offering a contract only 1 year on from the last, it's very different for youngsters who can go from hundreds, to thousands and tens of thousands in line with a professional footballer, (which they are) in a matter of months.

Well done lad, keep going, don't be afraid to shoot with either foot or with your mouth at the senior players when deserved.

Good to tie the lad down but if we signed him on a 4yr extension in March, adding a year in September seems more like a generous increase at the behest of the player's increase unless it was a performance related trigger of the previous deal.

I don't think the length of the contract matters. Its a contract for a young breakthrough player who could be anything, we just don't know. We have tied him down on the off-chance.

As Derek has said, l am also underwhelmed. He has done okay in a couple instances, nothing more. I'd be loaning him out along with Branthwaite and make sure he plays some football every week.

I would rather have youngsters coming through the ranks, than continually over paying for new supposed stars.

Isn't there some transfer ruling about the compensation clubs can get for players younger than 23? Seem to remember lots of stories about how little clubs get in that situation. At least this means we would not be in that position in 3 years if he develops as hoped.

The outstanding player in his year for the past four years, great to see the club have such confidence in him. And he too is full of confidence, wanting to take free kicks ahead of senior players etc.

He's not the finished article yet and hopefully he can add more goals to his game this season. He showed he's a decent finisher with his right foot in the U18s & U23s.

@Frank 32,

Wouldn't we all. But one or two every 10 years really isn't cutting it.

Good news. Well done. We need to be doing more of this.

Echo say he was already on a 4-year deal so why the extra year and cash? Doesn't seem to have earned it. And, even if he improves, he was tied down for another 3½ years anyway.

Great news. Anthony needs to keep working hard. He needs to improve, but he can improve. If he does, he's got a big big future ahead of him.

Hopefully, this is the first in a new line of homegrown talent with Simms, Dobbin, and Onyango to follow over the next 3 seasons.

Kieran, we are EitC, the worlds greatest charity. We look after our own, no man left behind etc, cuddly little club.

Good luck to the lad but, if what you say is true...

Dave Abrahams, @ various.

This is a smart move. He was on a 4-year deal on a (relative) pittance, an U23 pros wage. Leave him on that and he'd be engineering a move. We've now put him on improved terms to reflect he's actually first team and extended the deal by a year.

Remember the Barkley scenario? Ross got his first pro deal, and then the one Gordon just got to reflect he was now in the first team, then he didn't get another new deal and almost left on a free.

I doubt anyone thinks Gordon is not going to be at least a half-decent player. There's every possibility he's going to fulfil the vast potential and so we need an extra year on the deal in case he really takes off this season and big boys come knocking.

This deal means he will still have a year to run at 24 and two at 23. We're protected if the sharks come for him.

If he bombs out, then I bet he's still on less than £30k a week, aka ¼ of Sigurdsson's wages. I don't think that's a bad move to protect our investment in the lad.

He got a bite of the cherry last season, and the coaching staff are impressed with his progress.

He is still learning, but it is a good deal, and it will give him plenty of confidence.

Has looked good when he played this season, sometimes better than the so-called seasoned pros.

“Mr Ancelotti” shows his class and professionalism.

I really like Anthony Gordon. Going to be a top player for us.

Great news.

I think it's fair to say Arteta would find attracting players to Arsenal much easier than the job Carlo has (London, Stadium, higher profile etc) they have just signed Gabriel Magalhaes. I would have liked him, left footed aswell.

C'mon Everton and Brands get the players Carlo wants! I'm just amazed Gabriel wasn't tempted to 2 tickets for the theatre and the DVD "David Moyes – Ten from Ten".

Charlie Dixon, I think the Mr comes from what Ancelotti asks the players to call him. If you look on Instagram, his handle is MrAncelotti. Mister for Italians is the equivalent to boss. I think the Spanish and Portuguese go for that too. I recall Richarlison calling Silva 'mister'. I'm sure Jay Wood could shed some light on that.

So sure, respect there, of course. But perhaps they're so used to calling him 'mister' that they just do it in interviews too?

Steve (40),

Yes, I realise that and I also hope he improves and becomes the player he can become. I could say he's got the same deal and wages that Garbutt got, if the £30,000 a week you quote is correct, £1.5M a year, that turned out well, and a few on here were predicting great things for the full-back.

At this stage, 19 years of age, it's all potential. To give him a 5-year deal on these wages is extravagant in my eyes. But, as I said previously, good luck to the lad.

Great young player. Hopefully he develops into a regular starter...

Nice that he has mentioned our Dunc as helping him, but of course some ToffeeWebber's know better: Big Dunc can't coach.

They know what really goes on at Finch Farm, but of course they don't...

A player of immense potential as he has shown in glimpses already.
I am sure that Carlo has seen enough in training to know that, with normal progression, we could have a real player on our hands here.

Good luck to the lad

Dave #47,

Garbutt was bought from another club so the contract was offered without seeing the lad training every day.

Gordon has been judged under the tutelage of Ancelotti and his team so the contract will have been earned by what they see on a day to day basis.

I'm sure this deal will be good for all at the club and, when Gordon himself trains and plays with better quality players (hopefully this season), it will be considered smart business by the club.

Since Derek Acorah died, his spirit guide Sam was at a loose end so I said I'd give him a break and for a couple of glasses of sherry and a pack of Mr Kipling mince pies, he keeps me up to speed with what's going on in the great beyond.

I asked him what's the script with Everton and never-ending dross? Apparently it's all down to Terry Darracott you know how he used to scythe down anything that moved well he went too far in Safeways in the 70s he was overlapping on the right side of aisle 6 pet foods when the Bishop of Liverpool's Mrs was the victim of a knee-high tackle that put her out of flower arranging for over 12 months. The Bish took exception and asked the Great Jehovah to do a number on EFC.

As for Gordon, he says the boy done good but not to get too full of himself or he could end up being bricked up in a tunnel like Henry the naughty engine. The Fat Controller Sir Topham Hat Kenwright is impressed with Gordon but will not accept him becoming another Martin Dobson, chewing baccy all through the game and wearing a smoking jacket and slippers on the pitch.

I may be wrong but this guy looks an absolute class act. Made up with the signing of a 5 year contract.

Steve @45, I had a few words for Silva, and Mister wasn't one of them, however Master, with a mouthful of Jacob's Crackers would sound a lot closer to my expletive for him! :-)

I'm happy to give young players a chance, but he may be a better player with good midfielders around him. At the moment the whole of the midfield is a problem and players need to be moved on. So, I'm pleased for Gordon, frustrated that we haven't had a midfield clear out.

Nathan (49),

Yes, Garbutt was signed from Leeds Utd and Everton had to pay £650,000 compensation which Leeds were very upset with.

I think you will find that the 5-year contract was offered after he had played in the first team, which was much later than when he first signed, and it was rumoured that a few clubs were interested in him, including Liverpool.

Now Garbutt has just signed for Ipswich; I think he is now a millionaire trying to get a foothold back in football. That money might be a handicap when he has to get up early on cold winter mornings and go training every day, it all depends on his attitude and disposition.

I think Garbutt's career could be a warning to every young footballer who is offered rich pickings so early in their career. Mind you not a bad ending in Garbutt's case, and I hope he has the determination to carry on and make it back into top-class football.

I watched Garbutt in League One. He's class. In League One.

Pleased for Gordon, but the best young player I have seen coming through in decades is Mason Holgate. This boy is class and will be a future captain of both Everton and England. His confidence on the ball is startling and his choices in moving the ball are normally impeccable. Can we please have another dozen or so Mason Holgates coming through the system.