Craig Gordon

The 29 year old is the third most expensive goalkeeper in the world, having transferred to Sunderland in 2007 for a fee believed to be around £7 million plus £3 million in add-ons. After Buffon and Peruzzi, this puts Gordon as number three in the all-time rankings for a goalkeeper transfer fee.

However, the promising keeper has not always lived up to expectation. He has thrice been displaced as number one, and injuries have also cost him dear. In four seasons at Sunderland, Gordon has averaged fewer than 22 Premier League games per season. We do not need another injury and error prone goalkeeper on our hands.

In April 2011, Gordon was ruled out of action for up to 6 months. This would mean that if he did make a move, he would probably be unable to play for his new club for a while. He has had injuries to his arm and to his knee, which have affected him on multiple occassions.

Sunderland have recently signed a new keeper, which means it is increasingly likely that they will want to offload one of their current shot stoppers. Mignolet has deputised for Gordon to great effect, which indicates that the Scottish international may be on his way out of the club.

Gordon has only one year left on his contract, so negotiating power will be weak. It is speculated that he will be allowed to leave for around £4 million. However, Wenger supposedly didn’t sign Schwarzer because Fulham were asking for very slightly higher than the £2 million that Arsenal offered. Perhaps Wenger feels that he shouldn’t over-pay for keepers, in which case this potential deal for Gordon will be even less likely.

With Szczesny and Fabianski having both had decent seasons under their belts, I doubt that Wenger will be searching for a new keeper. If he were to do so, I would imagine that Arsene would be looking for a cheap and experienced keeper who can pass on his knowledge to our young Poles. An expensive 29 year old from Sunderland doesn’t seem so probable.

Likeliness Rating: 1/5