At the age of 23, Joe Hart is already the undisputed number one both for his club and his country and has glowing references from some of the biggest names in the game. During the first game of the season he topped the achievement of being picked ahead of Shay Given by single-handedly earning Manchester City a point at White Hart Lane. To put it simply, it appeared that the man could do no wrong.
It is generally accepted that goalkeepers reach footballing maturity later than on-field players on the basis that there is no substitute for match experience and it doesn’t matter if you lose a yard or two of pace, yet Hart seems to be rewriting the rules. Hart made his first team debut for Shrewsbury at 17 years-old, already has over 150 first-class games to his name and of all the goalkeepers who started matches in the Premier League last weekend, only Stoke’s Asmir Begovic was younger.
Just a month after his White Hart Lane heroics, Hart came crashing back down to earth. A shaky and unconvincing display in Switzerland for England was followed by a howler for City against Blackburn which meant that Rovers left Eastlands with a point. Despite these errors, few seemed to be worried, infact, many seemed rather relieved. Goalkeepers, just like the rest of us, learn by doing and by making mistakes. It is the mistakes that keep you focussed and reminds you that however good people are telling you that you are, you still need to put the time in on the training ground to work on your weaknesses.
Be it right or wrong, goalkeepers are remembered for their mistakes – they can have a flawless 89 minutes then mis-handle a cross and lose a game. A striker can miss a chance or a midfielder can misplace a pass and within a few minutes people have forgotten, but as a goalkeeper any error is magnified. One only needs to take a look at Scott Carson for fine example of this. Thought of by many as a potential long-term possessor of England’s number one jersey, Carson made a costly error in an important game against Croatia and has barely featured in an international since. Then a recent run of errors has seen him dropped from the West Brom first XI in favour of Boaz Myhill.
So with Hart’s latest glitch coming against Leicester in the FA Cup 3rd round, boss Roberto Mancini has given the England ‘keeper a gentle reminder that he is still young and has a lot to learn. He said: “I think for a young goalkeeper it is important to always have full concentration but I think that Joe sometimes loses his concentration. He is always very assured but it is important to have concentration always. He is improving but I think that he has a chance to improve more because he is young and this is his second year in the first team. He can become one of the best goalkeepers in England but for this to happen he has to want to work and want to improve”. A lot has happened in the young career of Joe Hart and it must be hard not to get carried away, especially when Gordon Banks believes that you’re good enough to play for England “for the next 20 years”. But Mancini is aware that Hart is playing beyond his years and though experienced, he must still be careful to protect his young goalkeeper.
This is the first season that Hart has really spent under the media spotlight and as a result everything he does will be scrutinized, so let’s not get carried away and remember that Joe Hart has had an amazing season. But Mancini has done the right thing by reminding Hart that, despite being relatively uncontested for his position at domestic and international level, he must not let his high standards slip.
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