[dropcap]E[/dropcap]ngland number one Joe Hart’s future at Manchester City looks to be at it’s bleakest after new boss Pep Guardiola effectively allowed the keeper to leave.
Whilst a horror showing at Euro 2016 certainly didn’t do the stopper any favours, Guardiola has already sounded out that former understudy Willy Caballero is far more attuned to the way he wants the side to play, ie building fluid attacks from the back-line.
Whilst the comments could easily have been directed at any City player, the Catalan born coach certainly didn’t exactly back his keeper when asked if the 29-year old could leave, he comments;
“Of course. I want happiness for the players. I don’t want the players to stay here if they don’t want to stay.
“All the players here have a contract. If they decide they want to stay they are going to stay, but they know the situation when I spoke with them.
“If they want to leave because they prefer to play every game – not only speaking about Joe, speaking about all the players at the club, the squad – (they can). I want to live and work with the players who want to stay. That is no doubt.”
Hardly a ringing endorsement for a player who’s remained at the club for 10 years, Pep did however go on to suggest Hart could reclaim his spot if willing to stick at it.
“I said to him in the first morning if he stays he is going to improve and he is going to understand what we want from our goalkeeper.
“I met a lot of goalkeepers in the beginning who had problems and after two or three months became one of the best players in that position.
“That can happen, but when we played these two games right now, in that situation he (Caballero) is better, but that does not mean it is going to happen in the future.”
Whilst Hart has bounced back from similarly bleak patches of form in the past, the chance that he might be spending the majority of the season on the bench with Jack Butland hovering over his England place, would suggest a move away may be the preferred decision.
To be fair, once all the hysteria dies down, we’re quite confident Hart will go on to show what a decent, if not world-class, keeper he really is. Even if he does like to drop a clanger every now and again.