When Celtic signed Joe Hart, it is safe to say that quite a few eyebrows were raised and it is understandable why that was the case. The English goalkeeper had not been a first-team regular for quite a few years and at 34 years of age, was no longer in his prime as a footballer. There was a lot of risk associated with the move.

Hart has been brilliant since coming in from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer. He has made the first-team gloves his own and brought some stability to the backline, which has seen the entire defence improve as a whole.

He has also proven to be a vocal leader, something that Celtic needed following Scott Brown’s departure over the summer and has quickly become a fan favourite.

Callum McGregor was full of praise for Hart recently. As reported by The Scottish Sun, the Celtic captain said:

“Joe’s been first-class. At massive moments in the game he made two brilliant saves.

“Every single player congratulated him but Joe just said, ‘That’s my job. I’ve got to keep the ball out of the net’.

“It shows how humble he is, too, which is brilliant. In those moments, you need big saves — and he’s been first-class at that.

“The standards he sets every day for the younger lads to follow is great. The importance of that can’t be overlooked.”

Hart has been fantastic since joining Celtic in the summer from Tottenham Hotspur

Is Hart the long-term solution for Celtic? No. And he might not even be the best fit in Ange Postecoglou’s style of football. But there is no denying that his presence has improved this side significantly.

Not too long ago, Celtic did not even appear to have a first-choice goalkeeper. Vasilis Barkas, Scott Bain and Conor Hazard all got their runs in the first-team but none of them were able to nail down a regular spot between the posts.

Hart has come in and done that, becoming an integral part of Postecoglou’s side in a short span of time. And he is making some big saves when the situation calls for it.

There were a lot of questions surrounding him in the summer. There are not many now. It was definitely the right move on the part of Celtic to sign Hart.

This article was originally posted here