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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Ewan Paton

Joe Hart Celtic future under Brendan Rodgers questioned

The future of Joe Hart at Celtic has been called into question by Packie Bonner.

The club legend has addressed the ex-England No.1 working under Brendan Rodgers.

The 36-year-old is due to enter his third season as a Hoops player, having arrived two summers ago under Ange Postecoglou.

During the height of his career, he established himself as a Manchester City hero, winning two Premier Leagues with the club.

However, as Pep Guardiola got his hands on City's squad in 2016, Hart was brutally dumped out of the picture due to his limited ability with the ball at his feet.

And ex-Hoops keeper Bonner reckons Rodgers could be tempted to bring in another goalie for similar reasons.

He told BBC Sportsound: "It's going to be a big season for Joe Hart. Joe fitted in really well into Ange's team, he made some mistakes along the way which all goalkeepers will do, but I don't think he was asked as many times to build the game the way that maybe Brendan would want.

"Is he capable of playing from the back? Pep came into Man City and didn't allow him to get the opportunity because his analysis was he couldn't do it, so he changed and that affected his confidence big time. I think he's done exceptionally well coming up here.

"He's a leader in the dressing room, he makes the big saves and the right moment which is a critical part to play for Celtic and Rangers. You need to make big saves when you haven't been overly active in the game.

"But the part of the game that we all know is about 70 or 80 per cent of your actions now is with the ball at your feet. He's done okay in it. Is he capable of doing it under Brendan where there might be a much greater demand? That's the big question.

"I think he's better than maybe some of them we've seen in the past. But is he up to the level that Brendan wants? Listen, Brendan brought in Dorus de Vries from Swansea because of his feet and he couldn't keep the ball out of the net. So it's a balance."

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