Joe Hart drops hint about Celtic stay, talks already held

When Celtic signed Joe Hart in the summer of 2021, it was not a very popular decision amongst the fans. The Englishman was seen as a goalkeeper who was well past his prime and had not been a starter for a while. It just did not feel like a move in a forward direction but in hindsight, it was one of the most important decisions the Hoops could have made.

Hart has been a solid goalkeeper for Celtic and the club's first-choice between the posts over the past three years. But even more importantly, he has been a leader and brought some much-needed experience to a squad filled with youngsters.

Unfortunately, Hart's time as Celtic's number one will come to an end soon. He has already announced his decision to retire after this campaign. The Englishman turned 37 a few days back.

On the back of his impressive performances this season, some would even like to see him overturn that decision and continue playing. While that does not seem to be on the cards, it does look like Hart could remain at Celtic in a different role if the situation calls for it.

Joe Hart drops hint about Celtic stay, talks already held

The veteran has confirmed that he will always be available to Celtic if the Hoops need to lean on him for anything and he has already made the manager and the club aware of that. As reported by the Daily Record, while speaking at An Evening With Joe Hart, he told fan media:

"I've not taken any coaching badges, that was quite a conscious decision. I know that coaching and management is ingrained in a lot of people. But for me, it doesn't necessarily do it for me. I want to help, I want to give back, but there's different ways that I can do it.

"I'll always be available to Celtic if they ever need to lean on me for anything, I've made the manager and the club aware of that. But coaching a specific team? That's not something that I'm looking to do."

So, it is clear that we will not be seeing Hart in a coaching capacity, like we did with Kolo Toure when he retired. It remains to be seen whether the club try to keep him around in a different role though.

Having someone like Hart around can be a major positive for Celtic. At the same time, they also need to make sure that they successfully fill his boots on the pitch.