Craig Gordon, a Scot born on Hogmanay in 1982, is the decidedly 6ft 3in (1.93m) commanding presence in goal donned in the number 1 jersey for Hearts. At 42 years old, he not only keeps the opponent's football from troubling the onion bag at Hearts, but also wears the gloves for the Scotland national team. The man is a sturdy 13 stone (83Kgs) of pure goalkeeping fortitude. His current market value hovers around the £127k mark as per Transfermarkt, and he is due to remain at Hearts until the summer of 2025.
Gordon got his start at Hearts in the autumn of '99, entering the fray as a trainee. His inaugural first-team league appearance for the Jam Tarts came in the 2002 - 2003 season. Establishing himself as a key player over the seasons, Gordon moved to Sunderland in 2007 for a considerable fee of £9 million. His stint at the English club involved varying degrees of game time seasoned with opportunities and challenges alike. This watch ended in the spring of 2012.
After a period of obscurity, the summer of 2014 saw Gordon signing up with none other than Celtic. A constant between the posts for the Hoops, Gordon kept goal in a respectable 33 league matches in his début 2014 - 2015 season at Celtic. From there, he went on to continuously serve the Bhoys in net, clocking up a commendable number of game appearances each year. His last season, 2018 - 2019, saw him make a total of 18 first team engagements, following which he bade farewell to Parkhead.
The stage was set for a second spell at Hearts, Gordon returning to his boyhood club in the summer of 2020. He has since held his own between the Tynecastle sticks, playing an instrumental role in the Premiership as well as in other domestic and European tournaments.
Historically, Gordon’s displays in maroon have been noteworthy with seasons 2023 - 2024 and onwards, in particular, standing out. Here he demonstrated his skills in net, participating in the League Cup, Scottish Cup and even European qualifiers. His towering presence has also been felt in the Nations League where he represented Scotland with four starts.
