Craig Gordon says the move away from Celtic in the summer of 2020 was about getting back on the pitch, not about the money. The 43-year-old Hearts goalkeeper left on a free transfer after being told he could stay only if he accepted a wage reduction, and he says the decision was driven by the desire to play football again.
"The one thing I always wanted to do was get back playing football. The money side was always going to be secondary. It was about doing what was right for me," Gordon said. He added that things had simply "petered out over the last few weeks" before he moved on.
That exit came after Gordon had fallen out of favour under then-Celtic manager Neil Lennon. Fraser Forster was impressing on loan from Southampton, Celtic had signed Vasilis Barkas and Joe Hart would later take over in 2021. Gordon, meanwhile, moved back to Hearts, the club he supported as a boy and the one where he began his professional career.
The move has worked for both player and club. Gordon won 12 major honours in six years at Celtic before leaving, then collected the Scottish Championship with Hearts in 2021 after the club had dropped into the second tier. He also won the Scottish Cup as a youngster in 2006, and by April 2025 he was still pictured in action for Hearts.
What matters now is the size of the game ahead. Hearts were top of the Scottish Premiership table by one point ahead of Celtic before Saturday’s title-deciding match in Glasgow, and a draw would be enough to seal their first top-flight title since 1960. Alexander Schwolow was expected to start in goal, leaving Gordon with a different role on a day that could still define the season for his club.
Gordon, a five-time Premiership champion, said the noise around facing former teams has never changed how he approaches a match. "Everybody seems to worry about playing against former teams," he said. "People will look too much into that and say, 'The player's not being respectful,' but you have to go out and try and win."
For a player who made just three league outings this season, that is the point. Gordon’s career has already delivered trophies, a Scotland comeback of sorts and a return to the club he loves. On Saturday, Hearts needed the result more than the memory.
