Anthony Gordon has branded the numbers involved in Chelsea's summer pursuit of him as 'crazy' while admitting it was never his intention to force a move away from Everton.
The 21-year-old was targeted by the Londoners during the summer transfer window, who saw two bids rejected for the youngster and were reportedly willing to offer as much as £60million to secure the services of the Everton academy graduate.
This interest arrived on the back of a breakthrough season for Gordon, who was a standout figure in an otherwise dismal season for the Toffees. He made a total of 40 first-team appearances during the 2021/22 campaign, developing into a key player in attack.
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Speaking out on his summer of speculation for the first time, the Everton star has admitted the reported figures floating around were challenging to comprehend. "It's absolutely crazy. Personally, I don't think any player is worth that amount of money but I'm also not going to talk myself down. The money in football, that's just how it is nowadays," he said.
"You're also paying for potential all the time these days. You need to stay humble. You need to focus on today and tomorrow and don't look too far into the future. I wasn’t too focused on that because I can only control what I can control. I think the minute you do that (thinking he is a £60m player), there’s only one way you’re going to go.
"That’s part and parcel of football. When you’re doing well, there’s always going to be that speculation. But because the place (Everton) is so good, it’s not a place where I’m devastated because I have to stay. That’s never been the case. I was never desperate to leave Everton. It was definitely not the case."
As well as impressing at club level, Gordon is continuing to shine on the international stage for England under-21s and helped Lee Carsley's side top a 3-1 friendly win over Germany on Tuesday evening.
Capped at U18, U19, U20 and U21 level, it seems only a matter of time before the Everton No.10 makes his senior bow. Making the cut for this year's World Cup may prove to be a step too far, though Gordon has refused to rule out the possibility of such an achievement.
He said: "If I didn't have the ambition to play for England in the World Cup then I would be a bit stupid. You're always on audition, especially in the under-21s, because you're so close to the first team. But I understand the squad is so good at the minute that it's going to be really tough to get in.
"I'm 100 per cent focused on making the World Cup squad. If it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. It's out of my control. But I'll definitely give it my best try. To get there I'll need to score a lot of goals in the next couple of games.. I'm ready for that challenge."
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