Joe Hart sends clear message ahead of Celtic title defence

Celtic remained unbeaten in pre-season, with a 2-0 victory against Norwich City sending them on a high towards the 2022/23 Premiership campaign. Ange Postecoglou’s side will be facing Aberdeen on Flag Day, as they look to defend the Scottish crown against Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Rangers.

The curtain-raiser is less than a week away now. The general feeling among the club supporters is one of confidence, in a direct contrast to how things had been a year back, when there were zero expectations surrounding a Celtic side that had finished trophyless and 25 points behind the Rangers in the previous campaign.

But Celtic’s number one, Joe Hart, is pretty clear that this is a completely new beginning once again.

Last season, Hart was fantastic with the gloves and as a leader, playing a key part in Celtic’s double win. This is not his first time at the top of the mountain though, having enjoyed a lot of success at Manchester City. Thus, he will be aware of what it takes to stay at the top season after season. As reported by Daily Record, the 35-year-old said:

"“We’ve put ourselves in the best position we can. That has been the message.“We can’t build on what we did last year as last year has gone. We set a level and we want to be at that level when we start on Sunday.“It’s tough here. You need to win and you need to keep winning. But we are going to take care of ourselves and put ourselves in the best position to, hopefully, be on our mettle. If we are, we are going to win games.”"

Hart sends clear message ahead of Celtic title defence

An experienced campaigner in a squad that averages the age of 25 this season, Hart has regained his confidence at Celtic. Following underwhelming spells during his last few years in England, where he seemed to lose his status as a first-team starter, he has proven that he is still capable of playing at a top level.

The club did sign Benjamin Siegrist this summer on a free transfer though and it will be interesting to see if he can push Hart for the gloves.

The Swiss goalkeeper was one of the best in the Scottish Premiership during his time at Dundee United, and was even linked with Manchester United and the Rangers this summer, before ending up at Celtic.