An appearance at the World Cup finals would feels like a fitting full stop for Craig Gordon. The very best way to draw a line under a career which should have been over and done with until an appearance in America added a final footnote to the story.
Last year, a slipped disc in his neck pinched a nerve and created lingering weakness down his arm. Consulting a spine specialist in March, he was warned that treatment for the issue might paralyse or kill him.
There comes a point when a footballer needs to listen to his body and take the hint. Father to another newborn baby son, Scotland’s out-of-contract keeper has much to live for and prolonging his career could make it harder to be the father that he wants to be.
The future is a scary place and a World Cup suspends reality for three or four weeks. While America might sound the last post for his playing career, it’s not the time to say so just yet.
“There will come that moment, whether that’s now or whether that’s next year,” he acknowledges. “We will cross that bridge when we come to it.
“At the moment I’m doing everything I possibly can to be at the top level I can be at. The future will take care of itself after that.
“I’m just enjoying the moment. It’s been a tough year to get to this point, to get myself in the position physically to be able to compete at this level.
“I feel as if I am there now. I feel good. We’ll see once the tournament’s finished. I’ll have a little break after that and see what happens.”
At 43, the Scotland goalkeeper will be the oldest player at the 2026 World Cup. His international debut came in 2004, before three members of the current squad – Tyler Fletcher, Findlay Curtis and Ben Gannon-Doak – were born. Aaron Hickey, the right-back, was just a year old.
He won’t be the oldest World Cup goalkeeper in history whatever transpires. That accolade belongs to Essam El Hadary, aged 45 years and 161 days when he made his tournament debut for Egypt in Russia in 2018. Faryd Mondragon was 43 years and three days old when he played for Colombia in 2014 and, if Gordon plays, he goes second on the list. The great Dino Zoff was a mere stripling when he played in a World Cup final for Italy at the age of 40.
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“We [goalkeepers] don’t have to run up and down the pitch, so of course there is a physical element to that which makes it a lot easier,” says Gordon. “On the other side of that, we are chucking ourselves on the ground day in, day out.
“The robustness, the physical qualities that you need are slightly different.
“I hope that I am showing that the older guys and older people that it’s just a number.
“If you put your mind to it, your body can still do amazing things. I want to be that inspiration for people to know that as you get older you can still perform to a very high level if you are willing to put in the work and the time it takes.”
Speak to any footballer about retirement and the fear in their eyes is difficult to miss. After decades of discipline, structure, daily exercise, adrenaline, celebrity, money and adoration, the days will empty. The phone will stop ringing quite so often and, for all but the highest earners, real life comes crashing in.
Some land on their feet with a role as a coach, a manager, a sporting director or a pundit. Others find the transition to path to Civvy Street more difficult. If this is Gordon’s swansong, a new baby son will find a way to fill his days.
“He is just over eight weeks old now,” Gordon said. “That is definitely going to keep me young for a few more years yet.
“There are still a few sleepless nights and a few nappies to change.
“No matter what happens after the World Cup, I will definitely be staying young and I’ll have plenty to do.”
Players always think they will know when the time is right to accept the inevitable.
In a new BBC Icons documentary, Gordon tells of the day a spine specialist told him that seeking treatment for the neck problem which has curtailed his first-team involvement in the last year risked paralysis or worse. Put it like that, and the decision becomes a little less difficult to take.
“I think I will know when that moment is,” he said. “Right now it’s just making sure my body is in the best possible way to play this World Cup and to do everything that I can for this squad to try to do as well as we can.
“I am always striving to improve, to keep doing what it takes to get better.
“Obviously as you get older, things get more difficult. It’s about finding ways to get round that, to still push forward and make sure I am doing everything I possibly can.
“And finding new ways to do that – whether it’s more training sessions, more gym work. Finding a balance that works for me to make sure that when I am called upon, I’m ready to go.”
For Steve Clarke, the physical ailments raise an obvious question. When Kasper Schmeichel tried to ignore the glaring pain in his left shoulder, it cost Celtic points and games
Judging how ready Gordon is to play in a World Cup is tricky when he played so little football for his club last season. While sentiment says that he should play, a World Cup is no place for the half-fit footballer.
While Angus Gunn has played even less football for Nottingham Forest, he did play the full 90 against Bolivia on Saturday. Clarke can offer Gordon no guarantee of a happy or fulfilling ending.
“It’s been a tough year. There’s been a lot to contend with,” said Gordon. “I’ve made a few comebacks in my career and this was another one I wanted to make.
“I wanted to do everything I could to make it here, especially after the night against Denmark and the feelings everyone had.
“To be part of this squad again was a huge driving factor to get myself the opportunity to be part of the squad.
“To be the oldest man at the tournament is something to be proud of, regardless of position.
“So to finally be here and be part of something this big, to finally see it? Yeah, it’s a huge moment for any player in their career.
“Especially for me after the amount of years I’ve tried to get here. To be on the edge of the tournament starting is a fantastic feeling.”
