2026 World Cup: Craig Gordon ‘deserves’ Scotland spot despite injury-hit season, says Steve Clarke | Football news

Steve Clarke believes Craig Gordon, 43, “deserves” his place in Scotland’s World Cup squad, despite missing most of Hearts’ season.

This goalkeeper who has only played three games for the Jambos this season was included in the 26-man squad that will play in the tournament.

Angus Gunn from Nottingham Forest and Liam Kelly Rangers will also be on the plane to America despite not appearing regularly at club level this season.

It’s always difficult when you have a goalkeeper who doesn’t play often,” said Clarke.

“As long as the goalkeepers work hard in training, you can see that they can come in and play more games.

“Craig is a bit different in that he is injured. We are monitoring him, we have good reports from Hearts. Craig assures us that he is healthy.

“He deserves to go, because he participated in the qualifying campaign.

“Liam is in the middle because he is a very good third goalkeeper, he is good in the team, he is in good shape, the players respect him, and he works hard in the camp, that’s why I was able to go down to three goalkeepers.

“We can change a goalkeeper at any time throughout the tournament, so if Craig was going to struggle a bit with injury, hopefully he won’t, and we’re sure he won’t, we’d always have the option to replace him.

When I leave I will put a young goalkeeper in the squad as a training goalkeeper which should reduce the pressure on goalkeepers in terms of training loads.

“I can’t name him right now because we haven’t told the player yet.”

Curtis offers ‘something a little different’

19-year-old Findlay Curtis has been included after making his Scotland debut against Japan in March.

The Rangers midfielder joined Kilmarnock on loan in January, finishing his stay at Rugby Park with five goals.

“I was impressed with him when I brought him to camp in March,” said Killie’s former manager. “He fit in very well.

“He’s got something a little bit different from what we’ve got. He’s also shown that he can score a goal or two against a Kilmarnock team that has been struggling at the bottom of the league.

“The team finished well, Findlay finished the season in a good place and it’s nice to have a young player in the team.

“Young players need to play football, if they want to improve they have to play.

“Sometimes that can involve making big decisions and I think Findlay’s decision to leave Rangers in January to play for Kilmarnock shows that if you make the right decisions at the right time, and you have the strength to back that decision up, things can work for you.”

Stewart ‘in form striker’

Southampton’s Ross Stewart’s fine campaign sees him return to Scotland’s World Cup squad.

The former Ross County and Sunderland player scored an important goal when his team reached the Championship final.

“Ross has been in my team for the last few years, showing he can go up to this level. He was good in the team, then he had an injury problem,” Clarke said of the 29-year-old, who has not been called up since 2022.

“This season, in the last half of the season from January onwards, he hit the mark.

“He has shown that he can score big goals in big games. I will probably refer to Arsenal’s Cup game, where he showed that he can have an impact in games at that level, and the World Cup will be at a very high level.

“He has shown that he can score a goal sitting on the bench, and he is a striker in form, I thought it would be better to include him in the squad.

Shankland’s chance to shine?

Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland joins Ross in attack, along with Torino’s Che Adams, Charlton Athletic’s Lyndon Dykes and Ipswich Town’s George Hirst.

The 30-year-old was the top scorer among the designated strikers, scoring 20 goals in all competitions for the Jambos this season.

“I’m not worried about my best player,” Clarke said of Shankland after Hearts’ title defeat to Celtic on the final day.

“Lawrence had a great season, his club had a great season.

“Obviously, it ended up being heartbreaking which is part of football. Football players can withstand the rigors, they understand that going down can be more painful than fun and exciting.

“It will take him a few days and a few talks. He just needs to decompress a bit now and be ready to make a big impact on the team and the competition this summer.”

Scotland’s full World Cup squad:

Goalkeepers: Craig Gordon (Hearts), Angus Gunn (Nottingham Forest), Liam Kelly (Rangers).

Defenders: Grant Hanley (Hibernian), Jack Hendry (Al Etiffaq), Aaron Hickey (Brentford), Dom Hyam (Wrexham), Scott McKenna (Dinamo Zagreb), Nathan Patterson (Everton), Anthony Ralston (Celtic), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), John Souttar (Rangers), Kieran Tierney (Celtic).

Midfielders: Ryan Christie (Bournemouth), Finlay Curtis (Kilmarnock), Lewis Ferguson (Bologna), Ben Gannon-Doak (Bournemouth), Billy Gilmour (Napoli), John McGinn (Aston Villa), Kenny McLean (Norwich), Scott McTominay (Napoli).

Leaders: Che Adams (Torino), Lyndon Dykes (Charlton Athletic), George Hirst (Ipswich), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts), Ross Stewart (Southampton).

Where and when do Scotland play?

If you don’t plan on going out to North America, get ready for a night out! Or should that be early in the morning?!

Scotland’s opening World Cup game is against Haiti in Boston on June 13 at 9pm local time – but that’s 2am on June 14 UK time!

Scotland will remain in Boston to face Morocco on June 19 at 6pm local time – 11pm UK time. Then it’s down to Miami to face Brazil five days later, and that’s 11pm kick-off in the UK.

For those of you heading there – if you thought Euro 2024 was the trip of a lifetime, this will be i the trip of a lifetime.

The 2026 tournament will be held in 16 cities in three North American countries: the United States, Canada and Mexico.