The signing of Joe Hart at Celtic pretty much brought an end to the Vasilis Barkas period at the club.
The former England keeper was a hit at Celtic and made 153 appearances for the club with the majority of them under Ange Postecoglou.
The Australian took over at Celtic in the summer of 2021 and immediately looked to strengthen the goalkeeping position with the signing of Joe Hart.
Barkas’ time at the Bhoys was fraught with mistakes and errors and Postecoglou knew that he had to sign a strong-willed and experienced ‘keeper to offer stability in the Celtic goal.
And here, Hart has shared the real conversation he had with Ange and what the both of them spoke about before the big Englishman put pen to paper on a three-year at Celtic.
Joe Hart on how he was treated at Tottenham before joining Celtic
Hart told Takes From The Terrace, “I said I was at a point at Tottenham where the new manager had come in, I wasn’t playing, and he deemed me not even good enough to be on the bench.
“And I was like, You know what? I don’t I don’t need this anymore. I’ve done what I need to do in football. There’s no real space for me. That’s no problem. I’ve had my fun.
“But then I was offered an opportunity to speak to Ange Postecoglou, who, respectfully, I didn’t know who Ange was. I didn’t know what he’d been up to in the world of football.
“But I was like, ‘Can we have a conversation, feel each other out?’ And from the moment I spoke to him, I just loved everything about him.
“I loved his calmness, loved his understanding of what he wanted to do, what he believed in, the research he’d done on me, the conversations that we had.”
What Joe Hart and Ange Postecoglou really said about joining Celtic
Ange Postecoglou always made a huge deal about signing players not just for their ability but for also their personality.
And it seems that from what Hart is about to reveal, the conversation he had with the then Celtic boss convinced Postecoglou to bring him on board for the Hoops rebuild.
Hart continued, “We spoke as two fathers, if anything, rather than anything to do with football, I said, ‘Look, I’ve got a young family. I really wanted my son to see me play, and I want to represent.
‘I feel like a father figure in a dressing room, if you need that, if you need someone who’s still got quality and still got desire, but also wants to help. I’m offering myself to you. If you don’t, I totally respect that. You know, I’m not the guy for you’.
“He said that’s something that he needed. He’d done, all the research that he needed to do, and he’d seen enough of me as a goalkeeper that he didn’t even need to do any research.
“So if we can make it work, we would. Very, very honest. He made it very clear he’s not the kind of guy who wants to have a close relationship with his players, and I totally respect that and he was very consistent with that.
“But I feel like we had a unique bond in terms of we needed, we could both help each other out. And I’m forever grateful for that and spent some special years playing some crazy football.”
Hart became an instant fan favourite as he created a huge emotional bond with the Parkhead support. That bond was proven by the send-off the Celtic fans gave the former Tottenham man in the final game of last season.
Hart still remains a favourite amongst the Celtic support now that he still speaks so passionately about the club during his punditry duties.
With seven major Scottish honours to his name, Hart’s three seasons at Celtic were probably the most memorable of his entire footballing career.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
