Joe Hart
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70%Born
1987 (37 years old)
Birth Place
Shrewsbury, EnglandPosition
Goalkeeper
Status
Retired
Ethnicity
White
Team Number
Height
196 cm
Weight
78 kg
Outfitter
Kit
Side
Agent
Wage Year
Player Manager ID
5119142
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Full Body Render
Sport
SoccerTeam
_Retired Soccer
2nd Team
League
_No League Soccer
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Charles Joseph John Hart (born 19 April 1987) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
He began his career at his hometown club Shrewsbury Town in the Football Conference and League Two. In 2006, he moved up to the Premier League with Manchester City, having attracted the attention of several other top-flight teams. In his first season, he spent time on loan at Tranmere Rovers and Blackpool. Hart had a loan spell with Birmingham City in the 2009–10 season, during which he was nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year and was voted as the Premier League goalkeeper of the season in recognition of his performances. He returned to Manchester City for the 2010–11 season and won the Golden Glove for keeping the most clean sheets throughout the Premier League season. Hart replicated this feat in the 2011–12 season as Manchester City won the Premier League title. He won the Golden Glove for the third year in a row the following season, and won again in 2012–13 for his fourth in five years. In between, Hart won a second Premier League title with Manchester City in 2013–14. With over 100 Premier League clean sheets, Hart holds the joint record for the most Premier League Golden Glove awards (four).
With the arrival of new manager Pep Guardiola at Manchester City in 2016, Hart became the second-choice goalkeeper and made only one appearance in the Champions League before moving on loan to Torino and West Ham United in successive seasons. In August 2018, he moved to Burnley on a permanent transfer after injuries to the club's two regular goalkeepers. When they returned from injury, Hart again found himself in the role of backup and he left the club at the end of his contract in June 2020. In August 2020, Hart signed with Tottenham Hotspur on a two-year deal. A year later, he signed for Scottish Premiership side Celtic. On 22 February 2024, Hart announced his intention to retire from football at the end of the 2023–24 season.
A former regular for England at Under-21 level, Hart made his senior international debut in June 2008, and was recognised as England's first-choice goalkeeper from 2010 to 2017. He has gained 75 caps since his debut in 2008, keeping 43 clean sheets and was selected in England's squads for two FIFA World Cups and two UEFA European Championships.
Hart was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, to Charles Hart, who sold gym equipment, and his wife Louise, a nursery school teacher. He attended Oxon Primary School, followed by Meole Brace School in Shrewsbury, where he was head boy in his final year. As a schoolboy, he was an equally competent cricketer and briefly played for Shrewsbury CC in the Birmingham and District Premier League and also spent two years in Worcestershire's youth squads, playing alongside England cricketer Steven Davies.
Having been a regular in the England under-21 squad, Hart was called up by Fabio Capello to the senior England team for the friendly matches against the United States and Trinidad and Tobago. An unused substitute against the United States, he made his debut against Trinidad and Tobago on 1 June 2008 at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port of Spain. He came on at half time for David James with England 2–0 up, eventually running out 3–0 winners. However, Hart's senior England debut did not earn Shrewsbury Town the expected bonus of £500,000 from Manchester City, as negotiated as part of his transfer in 2006, because it was not a competitive match.
Hart kept his place in the squad for a friendly against the Czech Republic in August, but remained unused. After Blackburn Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson withdrew from the squad for World Cup qualifiers against Ukraine and Belarus in October 2009, Hart took his place, and in November, he was called up for a friendly against Brazil, but he did not appear in either match.
Capello named Hart in his provisional 30-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Hart played the second half of both of England's warm-up matches, replacing Robert Green against Mexico and James against Japan, and kept a clean sheet in each case. All three goalkeepers, Hart, Green and James, were included in the final 23-man selection.
Hart did not feature in the World Cup but started England's next match, a friendly against Hungary, to earn his fourth cap. He conceded his first England goal in dubious circumstances when the ball appeared not to have crossed the line from a deflection from Phil Jagielka, and made a vital late save from Zoltán Gera as England won 2–1. Hart was given his first competitive cap in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier, a 4–0 win against Bulgaria at Wembley Stadium; he made three crucial saves, one of which he palmed away to begin the counterattack that led to an England goal. However, he had a poor game in another Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland on 4 June 2011, inexplicably letting in two Tranquillo Barnetta free-kicks. For the second Switzerland goal Hart was caught out by a relatively straightforward shot which unexpectedly beat him at his near-post from a tight angle. Hart won another two caps November 2011 in friendlies against world champions Spain and Sweden, in each case keeping a clean sheet in a 1–0 England victory.
In February 2012, after the position was stripped from John Terry, some players and pundits backed Hart for England captaincy citing his strong performances and positive image.
On 16 May 2012, new England manager Roy Hodgson named Hart in his UEFA Euro 2012 squad. He played in England's second warm-up friendly, against Belgium at Wembley Stadium, keeping a clean sheet as England won 1–0. Hart made a mistake in England's first game, conceding a goal from a near-post Samir Nasri shot, which Nasri later stated he 'teased' his Manchester City teammate about in the aftermath. The mistake cost England victory and the match ended 1–1. In the tournament Hart made the most saves of any goalkeeper in the group phase with 14. However, he was beaten by Andrea Pirlo's "Panenka" shot in England's penalty shoot-out defeat to Italy in the quarter-finals. Pirlo had stated that Hart's antics led to him thinking that "he had to get off his high horse".
Hart made another mistake in a 2014 World Cup qualifying game against Poland on 17 October 2012, failing to punch clear a corner which led to a crucial equaliser that deprived England of a win. The mistake followed pundit Roy Keane's claim Hart was "cocky" and that he needed sterner competition. In England's next match against Sweden, Hart put on an uncertain performance, letting in a saveable long-range free kick and then a 30-yard bicycle kick from Zlatan Ibrahimović following a poor headed clearance. Earlier in the match a communication breakdown between Hart and defender Gary Cahill had presented Sweden with a clear opportunity to make it 2–0, and manager Hodgson said that it was "not one of Joe's best nights".
On 6 February 2013, Hart saved a penalty kick and the subsequent follow-up shot from Ronaldinho in a friendly match against Brazil at Wembley Stadium. This double save proved to be crucial in helping England win the match 2–1, and thereby securing their first win over Brazil for 23 years. However, he made another error in a friendly match against arch-rivals Scotland on 14 August, allowing a long-range James Morrison shot to slip through his hands into the net. After the mistake Hodgson considered replacing Hart as first-choice keeper.
Hart was selected for his second FIFA World Cup in 2014. He made his tournament debut in England's first group match, a 2–1 defeat to Italy in Manaus, and also played in the next match, a loss by the same scoreline to Uruguay where Luis Suárez scored both goals. With England not likely to advance, Hodgson made changes for their last match, against Costa Rica, with Ben Foster playing in goal instead. In what turned out to be Hart's only World Cup tournament as first-choice keeper, England went out in the group stages.
In October 2014, England fans voted Hart man of the match against San Marino – in which he made only one save and rarely touched the ball – and repeated the exercise a few days later against Estonia; Jack Wilshere was the official best player in each fixture. Hart became the sixth English goalkeeper to earn his 50th cap, in a 1–1 friendly draw with Italy at Juventus Stadium on 31 March 2015. On 13 November that year, with Rooney rested, he captained England for the first time in a 2–0 friendly defeat to Spain in Alicante. A poor kicked clearance from Hart late in the match led to Spain's second goal from Santi Cazorla.
In a warm-up match for UEFA Euro 2016 against Turkey, Hart made an error in needlessly rushing out of goal during a Turkish attack, allowing Hakan Calhanoglu a simple finish into an open goal. However, Hart was included in England's 23-man squad for the final Euro 2016 tournament. In the second match, against Wales in Lens, he made an error to allow Gareth Bale to score from a long-range free kick, although England came back to win 2–1. Hart made another mistake to let in a winning goal from Kolbeinn Sigþórsson in the defeat to Iceland in the last 16, after which he admitted that criticism of the team would be justifiable.
In October 2016, Hart put up one of the best performances of his career, producing a "stunning saves-show" in their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Slovenia to secure a 0–0 draw. However, in a match during a World Cup qualifier against arch-rivals Scotland on 10 June 2017, Hart conceded two goals directly from free kicks for the second time in his England career. Hart was criticised as the free-kicks, both from Leigh Griffiths, were considered saveable. By this point, Hart was being described as "increasingly uncertain and exposed", and there were growing calls for him to be replaced as England's starting goalkeeper. These calls increased after Hart put in a further unconvincing performance against Slovakia on 4 September 2017, in which he made an error in allowing an early Stanislav Lobotka goal and an important second-half save from Adam Nemec.
Despite being England's goalkeeper at their three most recent major tournaments, on 16 May 2018, he was left out of Gareth Southgate's 23-man England national team squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Hart has not played for England since. In 75 appearances for the national team, Hart kept 43 clean sheets, the second highest tally in England's history. However, he also conceded 48 goals, the 4th-highest in England's history and the most since Peter Shilton, and is also the only England goalkeeper to have played more than once at a World Cup but to have never kept a clean sheet at one.
Hart married Kimberly Crew in Florence, Italy, in 2015. As of August 2016, they had one son.
In 2017, Hart was targeted in his car at a petrol station in Romford by thieves who stole his watch, wallet and mobile phone.
On 7 July 2018, Hart turned out for Shrewsbury Cricket Club during a Birmingham and District Premier League match against Knowle and Dorridge. He batted at number 9 – scoring 6 runs – and took a catch as the match ended in a draw.
Career Honours
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2007 (Loan) |
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2016-2017 (Loan) |
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