15-cap Croatia star, and scorer of ridiculous penalties Josip Juranovic, has praised Celtic teammate Joe Hart, who he described as top-class.
Hart was incredibly unfortunate to be on the losing side last night. He made some outrageous saves, most notably from Adli just centimetres from goal. In a fantastic European outing, it’s remarkable that Hart conceded three times.
Juranovic, whose equally audacious penalty saw Celtic equalise with Bayer Leverkusen, has given lavish praise to the former England number 1. The two have become friends since joining Celtic together, being spotted eating steaks in Glasgow’s West End.
The Croatian international was full of adoration for his teammate, while reflecting on the result as a whole. He said [Scottish Daily Mail, print edition p. 109]
“[Hart] is amazing.
“He is top class. A top person and a top goalkeeper.
“You can see that Celtic is growing as a team. Each game we want to improve. We listen to the coach, he has some new tactics and I think that you can see in every game that we are improving.
“I feel disappointed because we lost. But I am also proud of the team because we faced a really good team, a Champions League team, and we showed that when we are away from home that we will attack and score goals. Unfortunately for us, we also conceded three bad goals.”
Croatia and Celtic star Josip Juranovic believes good times are coming for Joe Hart and Celtic
Josip Juranovic wasn’t entirely blameless last night. The penalty was audacious in the extreme, but some of his passing play was sloppy, and allowed Bayer Leverkusen opportunities.
His experience is a huge asset to the Celtic defence. But Josip Juranovic can’t get complacent, especially at big moments.
He’s right about Joe Hart, though. Since arriving to a mixed response from Celtic supporters, he’s been imperious. It’s genuinely really sad for the ex-Manchester City goalkeeper how many goals Celtic have conceded in the Europa League. Over time, that’s going to be a huge focus for the Bhoys at Lennoxtown.
This Celtic team are improving, though. In the end, we just didn’t have the reliable squad options to see the game out, and it cost us. In terms of what the starting XI achieved, there can’t be too many complaints at all.
Judging by the reactions of some Bayer Leverkusen players, it’s clear we had a right go and rattled them.
Better results and good times will surely come if the players continue to believe in Ange Postecoglou. Josip Juranovic knows that, and it’s partially up to him to make sure everyone else does, too.
Read more: “Joy, provocation”; Bayer Leverkusen heartbreaker explains outburst at Celtic defender
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