Brendan Rodgers has challenged his Celtic side to ensure that retiring goalkeeper Joe Hart bows out in a blaze of glory next month. The 37-year-old former England international announced in February that he would be hanging up his gloves at the end of this season, and now has just six games remaining of his professional career. Every one of those matches carries huge significance as the Hoops, currently three points clear at the top of the cinch Premiership, bid to seal the league title before facing Rangers in the Scottish Cup final on May 25. That Hampden Park clash will be Hart’s farewell appearance, and Rodgers is determined to send him out on a high. ‘He’s been an absolutely brilliant player in his career,’ the Celtic manager told Celtic TV. ‘If you go back to when he was at Shrewsbury as a young player and now fast forward, all his life, the commitment and the sacrifices he has made have all been for the team. He’s very much a team player, and seeing how he has supported his teammates this season, he’s absolutely brilliant. Of course, we want to do it for the club, but for Joe finishing off this would be a wonderful sign-off for him.’ Rodgers attended ‘An Evening With Joe Hart’ at Parkhead on Sunday, and revealed that the Englishman, who won 75 caps for his country, was blown away by the reception he received from supporters. ‘If you’re a player that doesn’t really know what this club is about and you come into it, you hear all the talk around Celtic being a real family club and the passion of the supporters and the care they give to people,’ said Rodgers. ‘That (Sunday’s event) is an example of it. If they did that at the Hydro (in Glasgow) it would probably have sold out as well. ‘But for the club to arrange that for Joe, for the tickets to sell out in one day, and for him to feel that affection, that is what players and people miss when they leave Celtic because it just does not happen at most clubs, that feeling. ‘He was just so appreciative of that from speaking to him during and after the event.’ Sunday’s event came just over 24 hours after Hart missed a penalty in the Scottish Cup semi-final shootout with Aberdeen, before making a decisive save from Killian Phillips minutes later. Reflecting on his goalkeeper’s eventful afternoon at Hampden, Rodgers – whose side visit Dundee on Sunday – said: ‘It takes great courage for any player to step up and take a penalty. ‘I’ve seen Joe here (at the training ground) and how well he hits it, so we had no hesitation in putting him on that fifth penalty. But I think where his experience comes in, he didn’t let it bother him. ‘He had the miss, which was unfortunate, but straight away, the mindset shifts to being really positive and he ends up being the hero in a different way, in probably the way he would have expected.’
Rodgers Challenges Celtic to Give Joe Hart a Glorious Farewell
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