Joe Hart<\/a>, has confirmed that he will hang up his gloves at the conclusion of the current season. The former England international and Manchester City stalwart, now 36, will see his three-year contract with Celtic expire in the summer.
Hart, who made his first-team debut for Shrewsbury in April 2004 and earned 75 caps for England, revealed his retirement decision in an interview with Celtic TV.The announcement comes as Celtic navigates through a successful season, defending their Premiership title and vying for success in the Scottish Cup.\u201cThis is something I have thought about for a while,\u201d said Hart. \u201cThere\u2019s no right or wrong time is there? But the way this club works is that I\u2019m playing out at the moment. There\u2019s so much on it. There\u2019s so much heart and soul poured into what we\u2019re doing as a football club.”
The experienced goalkeeper expressed gratitude for the club’s open-mindedness and the understanding he received from key figures such as Brendan Rodgers and goalkeeping coach Stevie Woods. Hart emphasized his continued commitment to the team’s ongoing campaigns, stating, \u201cI\u2019m so up for it. I\u2019m still so involved and still so committed.”<\/p>\nHart, who secured winners’ medals in the three major trophies in England and Scotland with Celtic’s Scottish Cup triumph last season, joined the Scottish side from Tottenham in 2021. Despite feeling “great” physically, the veteran goalkeeper believes the timing is right to announce his retirement and alleviate any speculation about his future.
\u201cI appreciate the open-mindedness of the club and hopefully the open-mindedness of the fans when they see this and understand that this is not someone who\u2019s checking out; this is someone who\u2019s just letting people know because they think it\u2019s important,” Hart concluded.
Reacting to Hart’s retirement, one Celtic fan shared a video of his best moments for the Scottish side.<\/p>\n
Another post on X (formerly Twitter) mentioned his major accolades.<\/p>\n
Here is how different social media handles reacted to Hart’s retirement announcement:<\/p>\n
(Inputs from agencies)<\/span><\/div>\n