Ally McCoist and Jermaine Jenas tip Anthony Gordon for England - ‘He’s been playing far better than Marcus Rashford’

Newcastle's Anthony Gordon has been backed by Ally McCoist and Jermaine Jenas to win a call-up to the England squad after his match-winner against Manchester United.

Gordon's effort in the 55th minute proved the only goal at St James' Park as Newcastle secured back-to-back league wins over United for the first time since 1972.

It was Gordon's sixth goal of the season so far having also netted against Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Gordon was overlooked for Gareth Southgate's most recent England squad and is yet to make his senior debut despite playing a pivotal role in helping the Under-21 team win the European Championships last summer.

In contrast, his opposite number at Manchester United, Marcus Rashford, had another game to forget on Tyneside, unable to add to his tally of just one league goal so far this term.

Asked if Rashford deserved his place in the England squad over Gordon, TNT Sports expert McCoist responded: "If you’re talking about current form in general, in recent weeks, Gordon has been playing far better.

"It’s a heck of a tough position to get in. You look at the players they’ve got there – [Jack] Grealish, [Phil] Foden, [Bukayo] Saka, Rashford, Gordon. Gareth Southgate doesn’t have problems in that area because he’s got some great talent.

"But on tonight’s performance and in recent performances, Anthony Gordon certainly has to come into the reckoning."

TNT Sports expert Jenas added: "I think Southgate's got to give him serious consideration at the minute.

"We know he is very loyal to his players, whether they are playing well or not, and I think he will stick with Rashford for a period of time.

"But you can't ignore what Anthony Gordon is doing at the minute. That reliability he’s bringing in, he’s adding goals and assists to his game."

Analysing the effort of both players off the ball, Jenas continued: "The work-rate, that’s the difference, I think, between him and Marcus Rashford.

"You watch Marcus today and he doesn’t want to run back, he doesn’t want to track anyone. Gordon’s work rate is unbelievable."

The conversation comes just hours after England discovered their opponents in Group C of next summer's Euro 2024. The Three Lions will play Denmark, Serbia and Slovenia in what appears a relatively kind draw.

But while Southgate will have a selection headache in choosing his forwards for Euro 2024, he has been dealt a blow in goal after Nick Pope was forced off with an injury in the second half of Newcastle's win on Saturday night.

Pope, who is deputy to Everton's Jordan Pickford for England, could be out for some time if Howe's worst fears are realised.

Speaking to TNT Sports, the Newcastle boss said: "It will be a massive blow for us if he is ruled out for any length of time. It looked really innocuous, but that is usually the way and they are normally the more serious ones.

"You could see he was in distress and it looked like he dislocated his shoulder just diving.

"Martin Dubravka came on in a tricky situation with 10 minutes to go, narrow lead, which is not nice for a goalkeeper, so I have to compliment him for doing so well."

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