Joe Hart has praised his former Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou in an interview with leading football magazine FourFourTwo.
Last week the former Celtic keeper struggled to answer questions about Kasper Schmeichel, his great friend and colleague who has endured a torrid time in recent months as a mixture of fitness and loss of form has seen his levels decline with Viljami Sinisalo now set to start for the third consecutive match this evening against Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
Asked whether Kasper could re-take the gloves after his mysterious illness or whether Sinisalo would now go on to be the Celtic No.1, Hart struggled to give the opinion he’s there for as a pundit, as he’s compromised by his career long friendship with the Great Dane.
Yesterday Martin O’Neill confirmed that Kasper didn’t travel to Aberdeen but should be back for the Scottish Cup quarter final tie at Ibrox on Sunday afternoon against the Rangers. if Sinisalo does well up at Pittodrie this evening it’s hard to imagine him losing the gloves.
Football can be brutal at times and that’s something Joe Hart knows well from his own time in the game, which looked like drawing to an insipid close until Ange Postecoglou brought him to Celtic for three magical years, two under Ange and the other under Brendan Rodgers.
Speaking about Ange Hart was full of love for his former manager at Celtic and where he might end up next after taking a break following double sackings from Tottenham (shortly after winning the Europa League for them) and Nottingham Forest.
“I just want him to be happy. I want him to be taken somewhere. He’s got his way of doing things, and I loved being part of what he did,” Super Joe told FourFourTwo.
“I loved being a player under him. I love him as a person, but I want the club to be able to commit to what he’s going to bring because he’s consistent, super consistent with how he behaves, super consistent with what he wants from his team, super consistent with his messaging.”
Joe added: “That’s why I loved playing for him, because there were no grey areas. We had a very successful two years. When you lose one game, especially if you lose one game playing the way he wants you to play, which can be quite – if it’s not played well, it can look really messy.
“But that’s not down to his coaching. That’s down to the players, how we play on the day. Or, you know, from my goalkeeping, have I got it in me to just stay on that ball a little bit longer, just to allow the gaps to open up? Can I play that ball?”
After making a mistake taking the Forest job while on the rebound from that harsh Spurs sacking, Joe Hart notes that it has to be the right club for Ange Postecoglou, one that is prepared to buy into his playing system just like at Celtic were the results were sensational.
“If he does go back into coaching, which I think he should, because he obviously brings a lot to the game, I just want him to be at a club that fully commit to him, understand him, and back him because, he’s a really top manager to play for,” Joe Hart said.
On Ange’s sharper side, he noted: “I think he only becomes abrasive when he has to say things five or six times. If you watch him in interview, if you watch his opinion, if you watch how he talks, it’s only when he’s [asked for the]second and third and fourth [time].
“It’s very much the same answer and if you watch the first time he’s asked it, very welcoming, looking for the conversation, looking for, ‘You’ve got your point of view. I’ve got my point of view.’ I think by the third and fourth time, he stands up for himself.
“So that’s my reading on it. But look, it’s a journalist’s dream, to be honest, because you can enjoy him when it’s going well, and then you can poke the bear when it’s not. But, you know, he’s not daft.
“He knows what’s going on, but he just stands by and, like I say, clear messaging – that’s why I loved playing for him.”
☘️ Ange Postecoglou isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but former England and Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart ‘loved’ his time under the Aussie boss
❤️ “I loved being a player under him. I love him as a person.
✊ “He’s super consistent with how he behaves, super consistent with what he… pic.twitter.com/xJAW7bnbUP
— FourFourTwo (@FourFourTwo) March 4, 2026
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