Joe Hart's perfect response to media's Celtic treble questions

By John McGinley

March 10, 2022

Joe Hart refused to buy into the hype about Celtic’s quest for a treble this season when facing the media earlier this afternoon.

Celtic play Dundee United in the quarter-final of the Scottish Cup on Monday night. Get past that and it’s another trip to Hampden after success in the League Cup earlier this season.

Talking about a treble will be hard to play down for the media and supporters.

However, Hart has made it clear he and his teammates are not interested in entertaining the notion, with too much to focus on a day-to-day basis at Lennoxtown.

The goalkeeper told a press conference today when asked directly about the prospect of a treble [YouTube]: “Look, we play to win so obviously if you do the maths with that it puts us in a good place. But it’s not quite that simple, it’s been proven many times.

“We’re playing Dundee United on Monday who have every intention of winning this trophy. That’s something we really have to take care of and stay focused on. For us to keep the cup competition alive, we can only afford to focus on Monday.

Another reporter persisted, asking if he felt he was part of a squad that can achieve ‘something special’ season.

Hart went on: “I don’t think you can afford to think like that. If you speak to anyone who has achieved the feats you are referring to, every single one will say they it’s only by living in the moment and focusing on every game. The moment you look too far ahead, things can come at you hard.

“We’ve still got some good training days ahead before I even focus on Monday’s game. Nothing is going to be given to us and we like it that way.”

This is exactly what we want to hear from the Celtic camp. Nobody can be getting too ahead of themselves.

In recent years, the Bhoys have made winning trebles seem almost routine. For four years in a row we dominated the competition in Scotland to that extent.

But it’s not easy and everyone needs to stay focused on the short-term. This is a new team, still improving and it’d be folly for them to think they’ve won anything before actually lifting the silverware.

In other news, Promising teenagers spotted training with Ange Postecoglou’s senior Celtic side.