Former Manchester City and England goalkeeper Joe Hart has announced that he will hang up his gloves at the conclusion of the current season.
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Hart currently plying his trade with CelticWill hang up his gloves at 37Has 75 international caps with EnglandGetty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?
The veteran goalkeeper, who will turn 37 before his contract expires in the summer with Celtic, leaves behind an illustrious career spanning over two decades, during which he made 690 appearances for 10 different clubs. Capped 75 times by England, he was instrumental in securing two Premier League titles with Manchester City and clinching the prestigious Golden Glove award for the most clean sheets in four separate seasons.
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The journey of Hart's footballing career began at his boyhood club Shrewsbury Town, where he made his senior debut in April 2004. Subsequently, he moved to Manchester City, where he flourished into one of the Premier League's top goalkeepers, making 348 appearances. His journey took him to Torino and West Ham United before his permanent move to Burnley in 2018. A brief stint at Tottenham Hotspur preceded his move to Celtic in 2021, where he continues to showcase his skills between the sticks.
WHAT HART SAID
"As of June, I'm going to stop playing professional football," said Hart on his decision to retire. "This is something that I've thought about for a while. There's no right or wrong time but the way this club works that I'm playing at the moment there's so much on it. There's so much heart and soul poured into what we're doing as a football club, with the grand scheme of the club, the support base and the conversations that go on around it.
"There's obviously a conversation around the goalkeeping position for next season so I just thought it was important with the blessing of the club [and after] conversations with Brendan [Rodgers] and Stevie Woods [goalkeeper coach], that we get the message out. It takes one thing off the table that people will need to speculate over."
Hart went on to add: "I feel great physically. As good as I possibly can do for my age and what I've done to my body, involved in football from the age of 16 onwards. I've gone down every avenue to keep myself in the best possible shape and be in the best possible position to give my all come game day, and right now I'm at that. Come game day, I really do peak, but I'm aware that time waits for no man and I don't want my body to be retiring me. That was one of the key factors [behind my decision]."
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