Manchester City: Shay Given is wrong on Joe Hart possible return

Manchester City shown Joe Hart the exit door in the summer and farmed the goalkeeper out on loan. But according to a former City number one, the door may yet still be open for Hart.

Joe Hart was the long-standing number one goalkeeper at Manchester City. Until Pep Guardiola arrived, that was, and the 29-year-old was then subsequently shipped out on loan to Serie A outfit Torino.

Guardiola deemed Hart unsuitable for his style of play. However, Hart could still force his way back into the Spaniard’s plans, according to former City player Shay Given. Given points to Yaya Toure’s recent return to favor and sees no reason why Hart couldn’t do the same thing.

The Ivorian, too, was out in the cold and looked destined for an exit. But Toure is now a regular for City and has even been linked with a contract extension in recent weeks. So could Hart really make a similarly dramatic return?

No. That’s the short answer. Nobody knows what is going through Pep Guardiola’s mind right now. But if Hart doesn’t fit what the City boss wants, then he doesn’t fit. That’s it. If Hart wasn’t suitable six months ago, then nothing has changed since. Not at Hart’s age, anyway.

Hart was a fan favorite at the Etihad Stadium and his exit didn’t go down too well among City fans. But that is what ultimately feeds any talk of his return. The reality is Hart has always been an incredible shot-stopper. His highlight reel of saves is comparable with anybody’s.

But the England number one has always struggled with other aspects of his game, like kicking. Even a simple hoof down field ends up in row Z four or five times out of ten. Whilst his decision-making can be sketchy too.

It has improved over recent seasons, but when Guardiola needs you to play high and make decisions about when to come and when to stay in goal, sketchy isn’t going to cut it. Neither are the mistakes that Hart himself often makes.

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It’s easy to forget when somebody is out of the spotlight. But Hart was fond of a blooper during his City career. Much more than people seem to remember. The difference between Hart and Toure, of course, is that Toure was in the cold due to his agent.

Hart is out in the cold due to Hart himself. Toure only returned once his agent apologized. On top of that, City have had injuries and suspensions in midfield recently, which have made Toure more valuable to the team.

What encourages this debate even further is the current poor form of Hart’s replacement, Claudio Bravo. Bravo has only played 19 games for Manchester City in the Premier League, but has been underwhelming in his first season at the club.

The defense in front of Bravo deserves similar criticism too, if not more. But Bravo is the one taking the backlash right now, rightly or wrongly. Bravo is the whipping boy. And that more than anything is what re-lights the Joe Hart debate.

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A return is wishful thinking for many Manchester City and England fans though. If Bravo does turn out to be a flop, then he will obviously need to be replaced. But by a goalkeeper that fits the criteria of Guardiola.

And it’s already been established, that Joe Hart is not that.

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