I HAVE to say that if I were in Alex McLeish’s shoes, it would be Craig Gordon all the way for me.

He is a proven goalkeeper at the very top level. He has done it at Champions League level, at international level, at domestic level.

I mean no disrespect to Allan McGregor either. I think he is a fine goalkeeper, a cracking talent but, for me, Craig would be ahead of him.

I also think that Allan has come into the frame for Scotland on the back of a couple of decent performances for Rangers – but we are only talking about a handful of games.

By contrast, Craig has been there and done it.

It also struck me as odd that if you fancy McGregor as your number one that you would go and put Gordon in goals for Friday’s game against Belgium.

That one was always going to be a difficult one. They have a team of genuine quality and there was every chance when you looked at that one on paper about how it would play out.

If you fancy that McGregor is your top keeper then why not put him in for that one? 

I found it a very odd decision.

We can all appreciate that a goalkeeper’s life is a difficult one. I was a striker and I knew that if I missed four cracking chances in a game I could still redeem myself by ensuring that I got at least one goal to my name before the whistle went or my number went up.

It’s different if you are the guy in between the sticks. Pull off half a dozen good stops but what people remember is the mistakes that you made.

There was a bit of chat last season with a few people suggesting that Craig had lost his edge, but I have to say, now for me, I think he is an excellent goalkeeper.

Look at Liverpool keeper Alisson. They shelled out almost £70m for him this summer and yet you go into a game against Leicester and there’s a bloomer. 

I have never played with a goalkeeper yet who didn’t have a mistake in him quite simply because it is the nature of the role.

The other thing for me is that I have to say, too, I was amazed that McGregor was not penalised retrospectively for his kick at Kristoffer Ajer in the game against Celtic.

It is the kind of decision that leaves you scratching your head.

Three former Class A  referees? More like Class Z.

How you can watch that incident and call it as they did is baffling. It really is extraordinary but it is not just that it makes a laughing stock of the governing body, it also makes a pretty weighty rod for their own back over the coming months.

If you are going to allow that one to go then how do you react if, for example, Leigh Griffiths turns round and aims a swipe at someone off the ball with his boot on Friday night?

You think Celtic would take a retrospective ban after seeing one of their young players booted off the ball with no punishment dished out afterwards?

There would be an outcry and this is the big thing that came out of their decision for me. Where does it leave them?

It is very difficult now for them to utilise that law effectively now. And listen, this is not me speaking with a Celtic hat on.

If Craig Gordon had taken aim at Alfredo Morelos then I would be singing exactly the same song. Nobody wants to see that sort of behaviour on a football pitch.

I had my fair share of incidents over the years but I took my medicine after it. I could see where I had been in the wrong.

I just think now that it will be interesting to see what comes next whenever the next off the ball incident comes up and the compliance officer is asked to get involved.

I know some people were asking for transparency and an explanation of how the panel reached their decision but I don’t think we need to hear that. 

We all saw it. We watched what happened and to then come out and whitewash it was a complete joke. It really did raise questions about the credibility of the organisation.