da bet sport： Celtic goalkeeper Craig Gordon has been advised to think very carefully about any decisions he might make about his career in the coming months.
da jogodeouro： Earlier this week, Football Insider reported that the 36-year-old was considering his retirement from playing, indicating that he might not seek a new club when his current Hoops deal expires at the end of the season.
However, former Aberdeen striker Noel Whelan has urged the ex-Scotland international to weigh up his options before making a definitive judgement on his future plans.
Speaking about Gordon to Football Insider, Whelan said: “It only takes a couple of injuries and the player’s back in. You’re not going to move Forster out of the way at the minute, unfortunately, sometimes when you suffer injuries – we know he’s had injuries in his time – it might be the case he feels he’d be best off leaving the Scottish Premiership.
“His options are to retire or to find another club and move on. I don’t know if he’s going to go into a coaching role capacity, there’s all kinds of doors that could be opening for Craig Gordon in different areas of football.
“I would think he’d go into a coaching role, he’s got so much experience, so much he could pass on to go and help a young player but he could look for another club. It’s a difficult decision to retire, I’ve been through that and it’s a horrible moment in your life.
“Maybe he’ll have second thoughts, it’s very difficult to separate yourself from playing football.”
Although Gordon is now 36 and getting little game-time at Celtic, as well as missing two years of his career through injury earlier in the decade, it is understandable why Whelan is advising him not to rush into retirement.
The Hoops goalkeeper still seems to have something to offer to Neil Lennon’s team, given how well he has performed whenever called upon this season.
In his five appearances for the side in 2019/20, he has conceded only two goals (0.4 per game) and kept three clean sheets (60% of games). [via TransferMarkt]
He also had a solid return from last season when he enjoyed a regular run of games in the team. He played 32 times for Celtic in 2018/19, with just 27 goals conceded (0.84 per game) and 15 clean sheets kept (46.9% of games).
Although Fraser Forster has been first choice for most of this season, starting every Premiership and Europa League group game since August 25th (as per TransferMarkt), an injury to the England goalkeeper could propel Gordon back into the side, as Whelan has stated.
Scott Bain is another contender for the goalkeeping berth at Celtic, although the 27-year-old’s record this season is not as convincing as Gordon’s, with nine goals conceded in seven matches (1.29 per game) and only two clean sheets (28.6% of games) prior to injuring his thumb in August.
Gordon couldn’t be blamed for looking towards retirement, given his age, lack of game-time and injury history, but as Whelan has suggested, a turn of events could yet see him become a vital player for Celtic this season and prompt him to put thoughts of retirement on hold.
Celtic fans, do you agree with Whelan’s views about Gordon’s playing future? Comment below with your views!