'I understand you': Anthony Gordon responds to England teammate Harry Kane denouncing Premier League dropouts
England star Anthony Gordon “can understand” the team's mass withdrawals amid the latest controversy between club and country.
Pattern of the Three Lions Harry Kane ignited the discussion when he admitted he wasn't a fan of several stars dropping out of camp before the crisis League of Nations matches against Greece and Ireland.
Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Aaron Ramsdale and Jarrad Branthwaite have retired.
Speaking to ITV on Wednesday, Kane said: “It's a shame this week.
“Obviously I think it's a difficult period of the season and maybe he took advantage a little bit.”
“I don't really like it if I'm totally honest. As I said there, England comes before anything else.”
But Gordon, who came off before full-time in Newcastle's 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest to avoid further damage from a hip injury, could empathize with those nine stars who retired from international duty.
He also pointed to concerns about match congestion as another key reason behind the mass withdrawals.
“That's his opinion on the situation,” Gordon told talkSPORT.
“I can't speak for the guys who aren't here, but I will say that in this kind of winter period, November, December, people are struggling with injuries and knocks. And sometimes it can be really challenging, especially for guys who play three games per week.
“I was there last year and played through a lot of injuries, so I can understand how they feel. Maybe they want to take a break and take care of themselves.”
“Even mentally, playing so much football can sometimes overwhelm you. So I understand the situation and I hope everyone is okay.”
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Three-time England international Gabriel Agbonlahor also weighed in on the debate.
The former Aston Villa star understood Kane's perspective but believed the club's duties came first.
“It would be a club for me,” Agbonlahor told talkSPORT.
“It's a great honor to play for your country, of course it is. But first of all, your club pays your salary. If you weren't playing well for your club, you wouldn't be in those England teams anyway.” “.
Agbonlahor also believes that coaches are reaching into the ears of their stars and reminding them of what is at stake for their clubs rather than Nations League matches.
“You look at players who are leaving teams,” Agbonlahor said.
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“Normally it is the players who fight at the top of the table. The important games, now you come back from this international break, there is no international break until March. The calendar is relentless, especially in December. You have little knocks, When you look at the games, you are not even at the highest level of the Nations League.
“So the managers are probably getting into the players' ears and saying: 'Why don't you stay, let's get you cured, can you have a nice three or four days off and get your treatment?' So I can see why. the players decide to leave.” extract.”
However, the England international with 78 caps Stuart Pearce He jumped to Kane's defense and felt that the captain felt Kane's comments were “very refreshing”.
But Pearce felt some of the players forced to retire should not face criticism given they were injured in their final club games before the international break.
“I thought, 'Fair play to you, you're England captain, you're proud to represent your country,'” Pearce said.
“They asked him a question and he is a bit disappointed with one or two players.
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“When you talk about nine players who retired, don't blame all nine and suggest that they all retired cheaply. Many of them left the field before the 90 minutes were up at their clubs. So there is a different situation. over there.”
In the interview, Kane spoke of his joy at the culture established in the national organization by former England manager Gareth Southgate.
Kane believed Southgate brought back the “joy of playing for England” as the players “were excited to come” to the camp.
It's something Pearce was a big admirer of and, like Kane, hoped it wouldn't be lost once Thomas Tuchel's era as Three Lions boss ended. starts in January.
“He also alluded to the culture that Gareth (Southgate) has established over the last eight years and the pride one must have in representing him,” Pearce said.
“The one thing I really liked from the outside looking at this group of English players for the best part of eight years was the fact that they seemed to really enjoy each other's company and playing for England.
“I'll be really disappointed if we lose that either way.”
Pearce added: “We haven't had to talk about this in the last eight years about the possibility of players not turning up, which is a big plus.
“To me that's a big step in the right direction for what we want.”
England's international break begins against Greece on Thursday. live on talkSPORTas they seek to take a giant step towards returning to the first division of the Nations League.
Greece vs England: talkSPORT Betting Odds
Match Odds:
Greece – 10/31
Draw – 9/4
England – 5/6
*odds subject to change
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