Everton forward Anthony Gordon is “ready for the challenge” of gatecrashing the England squad for the World Cup in Qatar.
The 21-year-old, who is yet to feature in Gareth Southgate’s senior set-up, helped England Under-21s to a 3-1 friendly win over Germany at Bramall Lane on Tuesday.
The showpiece in Qatar gets under way in November, and Gordon said: “If I didn’t have the ambition to play for England in the World Cup then I would be a bit stupid.
“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. I’m hopeful.”
Gordon also refused to rule out playing in two international tournaments this season with the under-21s having reached Euro 2023 next summer.
“If I had the option to, I’d never say I’m not playing for England at any level,” he said.
“It’s not my personality. If I got the opportunity to do both, I’d love that – especially because of the work I’ve done here. I’ve played most of the qualifiers so I’d like to see it out.”
Gordon was the subject of strong summer interest from Chelsea, who reportedly had bids of £40million and £45m rejected by Everton.
Gordon, whose club were thought to be asking for around £60m, remains grounded about the situation but reckons the cash being spent on players is wild.
“That’s football nowadays – it’s absolutely crazy,” he said, speaking for the first time about the matter. “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. You’re also paying for potential all the time these days. That’s just how football goes.
“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.
“You need to stay humble. You need to focus on today and tomorrow and don’t look too far into the future.
“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.”
‘After Manchester City’s recent form, maybe they’re the underdogs against Manchester United!’ Former Red Devils defender on this weekend’s derby
‘Arteta, Alonso, Emery, me… none of us were physical players – we needed the understanding of the game. That probably helped us move into management’: Premier League boss reveals reasons for natural career progression
