'I'm all for that': Eddie Howe shares his thoughts on the Anthony Gordon contract situation

Eddie Howe spoke to the media on Friday morning ahead of Newcastle United's clash with Manchester City on Saturday.

Anthony Gordon has been the focus for a lot of people this season with fans and pundits voicing their concerns about his performances and more specifically his poor body language.

Despite his sub-standard performances, the England winger is in talks over a bumper new deal with reports suggesting at one point that he was poised to become the club's biggest earner.

That's now not said to be the case, although a huge pay increase is on the table and apparently the deal is close to being agreed.

Eddie Howe hopes a new contract will help Anthony Gordon get his focus back

With the way Gordon has been playing so far this season, we can't imagine that his becoming the club's highest earner would have gone down too well with fans, although based on his performances last season you'd be hard-pressed to deny he hadn't earned a new deal.

Eddie Howe was asked in his press conference how he feels about Gordon getting a new deal and he basically said that if it gets him back to playing well he's all for it.

"We'd love him to commit his future here. We need to try and help him get back to his very best levels. If that means signing a new contract, then I'm all for that, to help him be settled and concentrate on his football"

Eddie Howe publicly questioning Gordon's commitment is a big sign of a problem

The idea of joining Liverpool in the summer obviously took root in his brain and he's struggled to get focused back on Newcastle and now he's got Harvey Barnes pushing him hard for his starting place on the left side of the attack.

If Gordon doesn't get his head on straight soon, he could find himself dropped altogether.

For Eddie Howe to publicly say that he's not happy with how Gordon is playing, it must be bad.