Chris Sutton has warned Celtic not to go near Joe Hart.
With Scott Bain the only goalkeeper at Lennoxtown with first team experience that position is Neil Lennon’s transfer priority with less than a month to go until the SPFL season kicks off.
Back in March the hoops boss had three experienced keepers to choose from with Bain and Craig Gordon reliable back-ups to Fraser Forster.
With the former England keeper back at St Mary’s and Southampton looking to extract maximum value for their third choice keeper attention has turned to his former international rival.
Since Pep Guardiola arrived at Manchester City Hart’s career has been on the slide. Spells at Torino, West Ham and Burnley have confirmed the judgement of the City boss but as a free agent Hart will still be expecting top terms in his next contract.
Celtic have been linked with an interest in Hart but Sutton has a blunt message for Lennon in the Daily Record:
When Joe Hart first broke into the Manchester City team, he was a sensational goalkeeper – a brilliant, brilliant goalkeeper. Pep came in and brought Claudio Bravo in because he thought he was better at playing out from the back with his feet.
That wasn’t necessarily the right move because I thought Joe Hart was a better goalkeeper than Bravo. Hart went to Torino, his form dipped and he had a bit of a nightmare over there.
If Pep Guardiola rated Joe Hart he’d have brought him back into the Man City team. He didn’t, he went and got Ederson. Now, Ederson is sensational, I think he’s a brilliant, brilliant goalkeeper. Hart isn’t in his league.
Hart then went to West Ham and I thought he was a goalkeeper who looked like he’d lost real confidence and the same has happened at Burnley. Why would Celtic, whether he cost money or a free transfer, want to spend big wages on Hart? He’s not the keeper that he was.
He’s 33 years old, maybe he could come up and resurrect his career but Celtic cannot afford to take a gamble this season. That would be a gamble to sign Hart, looking at the form which he has been in.
It hasn’t been good enough and Celtic cannot afford slip-ups. That is why they need to get the deal done with Fraser Forster. Last season he was immense, you know what you’re going to get with Forster.
These two goalkeepers, at this stage of their careers in the here and now, Forster is streaks ahead of Hart. And that is the truth – Celtic should not touch Joe Hart.
The Forster saga is certain to run and run. After one first team game in 18 months before his August switch to Celtic the keeper won’t want to be staying on at Southampton as second or third choice to Alex McCarthy and Angus Gunn.