CraigGordon

A product of the Heart of Midlothian youth academy, Craig made his debut in senior football during a loan spell at Cowdenbeath in 2001 before making his Hearts debut the following season.

He soon established himself as first choice goalkeeper at Tynecastle, winning the Scottish Football Writers’ Association Young Player of the Year award in 2004.

He played a key role for his club during the 2005/06 season as Hearts finished second in the league and won the Scottish Cup, with Gordon named the Scottish Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year.

In August 2007, he signed for English Premier League side Sunderland in a British record transfer for a goalkeeper.

Despite injuries affecting his time at the Stadium of Light, Gordon made 95 appearances for the club over a five-year period.

After two years without a club due to injury, he signed for Celtic in July 2014 where he spent six trophy laden years before rejoining Hearts in 2020.

At international level, Gordon has had a remarkable journey since making his debut against Trinidad and Tobago in May 2004.

He established himself as Scotland’s first choice goalkeeper during the qualifying campaign for the 2006 World Cup and remained a consistent presence in the national team for the next five years.

Following a lengthy period of injury, he ended a four-year absence from the national team during a friendly against England in November 2014.

The goalkeeper was included as part of Steve Clarke’s 26-man squad for EURO 2020 but missed out on a place at EURO 2024 after another injury disrupted season at club level.

At the age of 42, Gordon started the final two World Cup qualifiers against Greece and Denmark as Scotland qualified for the tournament for the first time since 1998.

He became the oldest European player to play in a World Cup qualifier in the process, breaking a 68-year record previously held by Sir Stanley Matthews.