Joe Hart echoed the chants at the end of the Celtic victory over Hearts at the weekend as the support chanted ‘bring on theRangers‘ and the big Englishman reckoned that Celtic have another level to reach this weekend as there’s much more to come from this Celtic team before the season is out. So yeah, ‘bring on theRangers‘!

“Yeah, they’re next up,” Joe Hart said after the 3-0 win over Hearts, as reported by Daily Record. “We want to put ourselves in as good a position as we can this week so that come kick-off on Saturday, we’re ready. Was it good preparation? To an extent. I still don’t think we were brilliant. I still know we’ve got levels. We started a bit slow against Hearts, but football isn’t perfect. To keep winning every game is not easy.

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Celtic v Hearts – Joe Hart celebrates the 3-0 victory in the cinch Premiership match at Celtic Park, Saturday May 4, 2024. Photo Andrew Milligan

“You’re not going to just Rolls-Royce it. Even the greatest teams have to scrap and fight to earn every single point. We’re no different and we’re willing to do that,” Joe Hart said.

“Once we start ticking, we can really play through teams. And when we’re not, we’re willing to put the hard work in. The fans were superb. We’re only building though. We don’t know yet. But we’ve got it all to play for and we’ve put ourselves in a good position.”

Joe Hart also reflected on his overall experience at Celtic since coming out of the Tottenham wilderness to become the first pick Celtic goal keeper over three remarkable seasons at the club and he’s loved every minute of his time in Paradise and of course playing for Celtic against theRangers where he has a very decent record.

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Celtic v Hearts- Scottish Premiership – Joe Hart with Callum McGregor after the 3-0 victory in the match at Celtic Park, on Saturday May 4, 2024. Photo Andrew Milligan

On playing in the Glasgow Derbies Hart said: “I didn’t have any preconceptions. I immediately realised, having spoken to two or three people, that the common message was that you don’t know what it’s like until you are there. I didn’t have any expectations, but I can tell you that I have loved every moment of being a part of them.

“I can’t speak highly enough of the derbies I have played in previously but ultimately I’m a professional who wants to win, so I’m only going to enjoy Saturday if we put a performance in.”

In recent weeks it’s been the experienced performers within the Celtic squad, Cameron Carter-Vickers, James Forrest, Callum McGregor and of course Joe Hart who have really stepped up to drive Celtic towards another title and these players all look like maintaining that momentum this weekend and beyond to the Scottish Cup Final on 25 May, which will be Joe Hart’s last ever match as a professional footballer.

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Kyogo Furuhashi celebrates scoring the opening goal during the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Hearts at Celtic Park on May 04, 2024 (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

But for the former England goalkeeper it’s all about preparing for the next game and keeping the focus on that one and that’s Saturday at Celtic Park against theRangers.

“We’ll see. It certainly can’t harm us. It’s all on the line and we’ve got plenty to work for. We’ll work hard this week, keep everyone fit, keep everyone pushing and put ourselves in the best position we possibly can.”