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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Matthew Fulton

Brendan Rodgers posed Celtic transfer question over Joe Hart as Man City reminder sparks boss dilemma

Brendan Rodgers may place a much 'greater demand' on Joe Hart to use the ball at his feet, even more so than previous boss Ange Postecoglou did.

It was a key trait of the former England number one's game that saw Pep Guardiola take the callous call to axe him from his cushy spot as Manchester City's shotstopper. The Spaniard didn't believe the now 36-year-old could be the sweeper keeper he wanted him to be, but Postecoglou took the chance and Hart rewarded the Aussie's decision with a plethora of clean sheets across a long campaign last season that led to a Celtic Treble.

Legendary Hoops keeper Packie Bonner, however, has questioned what the future may hold for the dressing room leader, who he believes has done exceptionally well to revive his career in Glasgow after some tough spells at Torino and Postecoglou's new club, Spurs. The BBC pundit reckons Rodgers will ask more of his goalie and questioned whether Hart can get up 'to the level' the Irishman is looking for.

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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