Well, that would be one way to boil the collective blood of the blue half of Merseyside. According to a report from the Daily Star, Liverpool are considering a sensational swoop to prise former Everton winger Anthony Gordon away from Newcastle United. Nobody had that on their transfer bingo card this summer.

You will, of course, know Gordon’s story pretty well. A precocious talent at Goodison Park, his time with the Toffees became suitably claggy before he completed a £45 million to the North East last January. After a sluggish start on Tyneside, the attacker has exploded into life this season, scoring 10 goals and assisting 10 more across 34 Premier League outings, registering six appearances in the Champions League, and earning himself a first ever senior England call-up. Seemingly, all of this has been enough to pique the interest of Liverpool. With Jurgen Klopp set to leave Anfield this week, there is an unspoken expectation that his departure may also bring with it a certain amount of reshuffling in the dressing room. Players may leave, and others will presumably be brought in to replace them. To that end, Gordon has emerged as a shock target for the Reds, with the Star suggesting that a bid of around £100 million could be enough to test Newcastle’s resolve.

Despite being the richest club in world football, it is no great secret that the Magpies are feeling the external pressures of Financial Fair Play regulations, and it has been repeatedly claimed by various sources that they may need to sell one, or maybe even two, of their star performers this summer in an effort to stay out of trouble. The likes of Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, and Sven Botman have all been outed as prospective sacrifices, but making an almost immediate £55 million on Gordon would go a long way towards easing their worries.

You suspect that Liverpool’s admiration will represent a tempting proposition to the player himself too. Despite rising through the ranks of Everton’s academy system, Gordon is a lifelong Kopite, and has never made much of an effort to conceal his loyalty in that regard. Like any football fan, an opportunity to join the club that he has supported since he was a boy will surely, at the very least, turn his head a little.

But, of course, that does not guarantee his departure. The 23-year-old is under contract at St. James’ Park until the summer of 2026, and by no means has he shown any hint that he is unhappy with his lot at Newcastle. Gordon is thriving in black and white, and gives the impression of a talent with levels still to be reached.