Image source, Getty Images
England and Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon sometimes wakes up in the morning and writes down his goals for the day – not just for football, “but for life too”.
The 23-year-old Liverpool native is one of England's current Euro 2024 squad who are outspoken about the power of embodiment and visualization – setting goals they want to achieve.
“Sometimes I do this in the morning and visualize how I want my day to look,” Gordon says.
“It’s about being clear about who you want to be, and then it becomes a lot easier.
“We are all emotional by nature, and when we get emotional we tend to make bad decisions. Try to step back from your emotions and look at the bigger picture.”
Gordon spoke to BBC Radio 5 Live's Steve Crossman at Blankenhain Camp in England on Tuesday about his love of boxing, chess and psychology books.
“Before I started boxing I was pushed out of the ball.”
Gordon left boyhood club Everton to join Newcastle in a £45m deal in January 2023, having been at Goodison since the age of 11.
“I think everyone in Liverpool loves boxing. I think every kid is in their local boxing club.”
“I grew up watching that too. I think on the pitch it makes me more aggressive and more tenacious.”
“Before I begin [boxing]I was losing a lot. I was pushed off the ball a lot.
“And once I started doing that, a different side of me came out, my aggression, my desire to win, more of a desire to fight.”
“I taught myself chess. It's very peaceful.”
Gordon also said he likes the “deep thought process” of chess and the “tough challenge” of learning how to play the game.
“I think chess is a life skill because it can be applied to anything. You always have to think one, two, three moves ahead.”
“I actually taught myself chess. I had no idea how to play it. I just learned as I played.”
“I just love it. It's a very peaceful game. It gets your brain working, so I love it.”
“If Ronaldo reads, I read too” – Love of books
Speaking to former Premier League defender Gary Neville for The Overlap earlier this year, Gordon spoke about his mental toughness and his love of psychology and sports books.
He revealed that the book that had the biggest impact on him was “Winning” by Tim Grover, the former trainer of NBA legends Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
“It's a great book about mentality and what you have to go through to be really successful,” Gordon says. “Basically it says that sometimes you can do everything you think you can and still fall short, but you won't regret it.”
“He teaches you a high level of sport. You go through tough, sometimes crazy things every day to get to the top.”
“Not many people know that we go through so many different emotions and we have to deal with them, stay calm and perform no matter what happens.”
“He taught me how to deal with it, and that was very helpful.”
Gordon told BBC Sport he was taking three books with him to Germany – The Art of Winning and Leadership by Dan Carter, Never Finished by David Goggins and Life Force by scientist Tony Robbins.
Regarding Life Force, Gordon explains:[Manchester United goalkeeper] Tom Heaton was talking about Ronaldo at a table the other day and said it was a book he was reading and recommended it to the Manchester United players.
“I was listening and thinking, 'If Ronaldo reads it, maybe he'll just take a quick look and understand something.'”
Image source, Getty Images
On the subject of visualization, Gordon said it's a form of “meditation” for him, and that he “loves” to “think deeply and really stimulate his mind.”
He says he imagines different scenarios for each opponent and tries to end the game before that happens.
England play Denmark on Thursday in their second group game after winning 1-0 in their opening match against Serbia, in which Gordon did not play.
“When you're emotional or tired, you're probably going to make a bad decision,” Gordon explains.
“So if you can set your intention before the game and visualize it, you can have a clearer path towards your intention.”
Gordon was named Player of the Tournament when England won the European Under-21 Championship in July 2023 and has recorded a career-high 11 goals and 10 assists in the 2023-24 Premier League season.
He writes down his short-term goals “as if they were already achieved” and only writes down the date by which he will achieve them.
“There's no time to argue with them, there's just a clear path to follow,” he explains.
This started with the U21 tournament.
“I'm coming off a season where I was struggling, I'd just joined Newcastle and I didn't quite fit in.”
“My main goal was to go to the European Under-21 Championships, be named Player of the Tournament and win the tournament, and I achieved that.”
“These two big goals have really changed my life. [since then] It has risen.
“My main goal last year was to become Newcastle's most important player, so I will never be substituted. I want the manager to always believe in me, to value me and put me on the pitch, even if I'm struggling.”
