A Newcastle deal to sign Anthony Gordon is currently complicated because of the Toffees' situation, Fabrizio Romano has claimed.

What's the word?

Everton find themselves in the middle of a crisis having sacked Frank Lampard as the club continue to flirt with relegation, while they recently lost out on what appeared to be a done deal for Villarreal winger Arnaut Danjuma.

With no indication yet of who could replace Lampard, it appears any deal for Gordon could be slowed down, should a new manager want to keep him at the club.

The Englishman has been strongly linked with a move away, after failing to agree terms on a new contract, and according to Romano, Newcastle are interested.

Speaking on the Here We Go Podcast, Romano claimed that any deal to take him to Tyneside could take time given the situation at Everton.

He said: "They are in conversations with Everton for Anthony Gordon. We know it's not an easy moment for Everton, so this is why talks probably will be slow.

"They have to decide on players, on new signings, on the manager, so it's not easy now for Everton to make decisions. Also, because if you have a new manager and you are selling an important player like Anthony Gordon, you have to decide together with the new coach, so there will be these conversations for Anthony Gordon."

A surprising deal

Given that Newcastle are fairly well-stocked on the wings, with Joelinton currently keeping Allan Saint-Maximin on the bench, it would be arguably a surprise if they were to part with a significant fee to sign Gordon in January.

Although Gordon offers a lot more in defence, ranking in the top 3% of wingers for blocks and tackles over the past year at the top level, Saint-Maximin ranks in the top 1% for dribbles as per FBref - significantly higher than the Englishman, who is only in the top 47%. As a substitute, Saint-Maximin's strengths could arguably prove to be more useful when chasing a goal.

Gordon is younger at just 21 and has potential to grow, but given that he may not be an immediate starter, there are question marks over whether he is ready to make the step up to a club chasing a European spot.