Gordon: Winning Final Means A Lot

Photo by Jeff Holmes Craig Gordon thought cup winners' medals would be a regular feature of his career when he helped Hearts to Scottish Cup glory in 2006. The Scotland goalkeeper was proving himself on the international stage and was attracting interest from a number of top clubs. But Sunday's League Cup final is his only showpiece occasion since. Gordon's career did not take off the anticipated manner after his £9million move to Sunderland turned sour with a series of injuries, the last one threatening to end his career. Most people had written Gordon off before his extraordinary rejuvenation this season after a serious knee injury forced him out of the game completely for two years. So the 32-year-old has more reason than most Celtic players to long for glory in the QTS Scottish League Cup final against Dundee United. "It would mean a lot," Gordon said. "I have never got to a League Cup final. It would complete the set of both cup medals for me and I would love to add to that medal. "I probably thought it would come around again soon. I probably didn't take it all in as well as I should have done at the time and enjoyed the moment. I did think it would come again and I have come so close to nothing like this ever happening again. "I will be fully focused on the game but I want to enjoy and hopefully have a day that I can remember. "I have never really come close since then so that's an indication of what can happen in a career, and you never know when the end might come. "You have to enjoy these moments and try and win these games to give yourself the memories to hold on to when you finish playing." Gordon could be forgiven for sitting back and reflecting on how far he has come. Last season he spent time quietly training with Hearts and Rangers in a bid to ease his way back into full-time football, before his sensational return to the big time with Celtic. But the Scotland international will not be sitting back pondering. "Not yet, maybe afterwards," he said. "Just now I am fully focused on what I have to do and what we have to do to try to win the cup. It's a difficult game and we have shown how the teams can be on any given day. And now it's a cup final that's at stake. "So I am fully focused on that. Maybe afterwards I might be able to look back but not too long because we have the replay on the Wednesday. "It's just too hectic at the moment to take a step back and look at it that way, but one day I will."