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Craig Gordon Ages as Scotland Names World Cup Squad Numbers

BBC Sport Football •
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Veteran goalkeeper Craig Gordon will be Scotland's oldest World Cup player this summer, but he must settle for the No 21 shirt rather than the coveted No 1 jersey.Gordon, 43, earns his spot in the squad despite Manchester United's Tyler Fletcher claiming the senior number after becoming a surprise replacement for the injured Billy Gilmour.Fellow keepers Angus Gunn and Liam Kelly take the traditional No 1 and No 12 shirts respectively, while Lyndon Dykes wears No 9 and Che Adams gets No 10.The squad numbers offer glimpses of head coach Steve Clarke's thinking, with centre-back Grant Hanley sporting the influential No 5 jersey.

Scotland head to the US for their final warm-up match against Bolivia on Saturday at 21:00 BST before opening their World Cup campaign against Haiti in Boston on Sunday, 14 June.The group stage continues against Morocco and Brazil, with Gordon's experience likely proving invaluable despite his unconventional shirt number.

The 43-year-old goalkeeper's presence on the roster marks a remarkable late-career resurgence, though the decision to assign him No 21 instead of the starting goalkeeper designation suggests Clarke may be considering rotation options between the posts.