Liam Gordon getting stronger as Walsall push on

The Guyana international has won five of his first six league outings for Walsall this term – missing his only game in a 1-0 defeat at MK Dons earlier this month due to a knee injury.

Walsall, who missed out on the play-offs by five points last term, sit just one point off the League Two summit ahead of the visit of Colchester United today.

And Gordon feels maintaining a strong core of the squad from the previous campaign was key to Walsall’s strong start, while the recruitment over the summer has only helped them build on those solid foundations.

When asked if Walsall are stronger than the previous campaign, Gordon responded: “Yes definitely. It’s always good to go into pre-season with the boys that you built with last season, especially because it was a positive season that we had.

“We’ve added more players to that and they’re coming in and getting to know us instead. All of the lads that have come in have been great and they’ve adjusted to our ethos and what we’ve been building here over the past 18 months.”

Gordon is just six shy of reaching a century of appearances for the club in all competitions since his summer arrival from Bolton Wanderers in 2022.

Now in his third season at Bescot, the 25-year-old is confident Walsall is the best place for him to keep “growing” as a player.

“I’m harsh on myself but that’s what I’ve got to be to show the resilience that I’ve got. As long as I’m learning all the time then I can keep on growing as a player,” the left wing-back continued.

“Last season was when I really saw how much of a family we were and the gaffer has created that environment as well.

“There’s not really a separation between us and the fans. We’re all one and pushing in the same direction which is what you want from a club.

“That was a big reason for me signing (a contract extension) last season because of the direction that we’re going and being in that family is massive.

“As long as we can stick together, we’re going to have ups and downs this season but we all know what we want come the end of the season so we’ll just stick together and go through it.”