Hearts captain Craig Gordon begins rehab at Riccarton after double leg break

Hearts captain Craig Gordon has already started his rehabilitation programme following a double leg break on Christmas Eve.

The 40-year-old goalkeeper posted social media pictures whilst doing light gym work at Riccarton just four weeks since the injury. He is already ruled out for the rest of the season with a predicted recovery time of six months, but fully intends to resume playing in time for the 2023/24 campaign.

He suffered a horrific double leg break in a collision with the Dundee United striker Steven Fletcher during Hearts’ 2-2 at Tannadice the day before Christmas. That resulted in the goalkeeper spending Christmas Day in hospital as he underwent surgery.

He is determined to recover as quickly as possible and regain his place in the Hearts team. Zander Clark stepped in to fill in for Gordon as No.1 and has kept three clean sheets in his last three matches, the latest being Sunday’s Scottish Cup Edinburgh derby victory against Hibs.

With Gordon aiming to be fit and ready for pre-season training this summer, he and Clark are set for an intriguing battle to see who will be Hearts’ first-choice goalkeeper next term.

Clark is set to play an important role between now and then as the Tynecastle side aim to qualify for European competition by finishing third in the cinch Premiership. They are also aiming for the Scottish Cup final and, having reached three of the last four, want to go one better this time by lifting the trophy.

Gordon will be watching with interest, determined to reclaim his spot for next season.