Craig Gordon, born on the last day of the year in 1982, is a well-experienced Scottish goalkeeper currently guarding the goal at Hearts. Standing at an imposing 6ft 3in (1.93m) tall and tipping the scales at 13st (83kg), he confidently strides into his number 1 jersey time and again.
Gordon's current market value hovers around the £130k mark according to Transfermarkt, which is not surprising considering his long-standing career. As it stands, his contract with Hearts is set to end on the last day of May in 2025, leaving the player and the club a little over nine months to plot their next moves.
Gordon's relationship with Hearts goes back to October 1999, when he started as a trainee. His early career at Hearts was a steady progression of increasing involvement, rising from a solitary appearance in the 2002-2003 season to steady 30+ appearances per season in the following years, barring the 2023-2024 when he only had three outings and the current season where he has so far made two appearances.
In the middle of this Hearts tenure, Gordon was loaned to Cowdenbeath in the Lowland League in Scotland where he made twelve appearances in the 2001-2002 season before returning to Hearts.
Evidently showing his quality, Gordon drew attention away from Scottish football in August 2007. He transferred from Hearts to Sunderland in the English Championship in a move costing around £9m, a substantial investment indeed. At Sunderland, he experienced mixed fortunes with regards to playing time, making 34 appearances in his first season, but just one in the 2011-2012 season.
After a gap in his record, he returned to Scottish football in July 2014, where he signed with Celtic. With the Hoops, Gordon enjoyed a successful spell of six years, making over 30 appearances per season in his first three years. In his fourth year, he made 26 first-team outings, but his final year saw a decrease to 18 league matches.
Following his dedication to Celtic, he returned to Hearts in July 2020. There, he continued to show his consistency, being involved in significant numbers of matches each season since his return, aside from the 2023-24 season where he made only three appearances.
Over the years, Gordon has also participated in various cups and qualifiers, most recently keeping his net for Hearts in the League Cup in 2024-2025, the Scottish Cup in 2023-2024, and the Europa League Qualifiers in 2024-2025.
