The arrival of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City saw some sweeping changes take place at the club with some smart transfers. In a surprising turn of events, the future of Joe Hart saw a huge twist as the manager apparently found some attributes lacking in the Manchester City stalwart. Charles Joseph Hart has now joined the Turin outfit Torino on a season-long loan, a move that can protect his number 1 spot for England and furthermore help him get on to a better club. Torino is by no means a club of smaller stature. They still have more domestic titles than City and were once the popular team in Turin.
A keeper of Joe Hart’s magnitude will have a key impact on a team like Torino. Having missed out on the top ten last season by just one point shows how unfortunate they have been. With some good signings in the form of Ljajic and Falque, they will fill the void in between the sticks, provided the loan move is successful. Having already worked with their assistant manager Hart brings with him his leadership, experience and humble nature. The team is more than capable of improving from last season. Nonetheless, consistency and standards will have to be maintained provided they want to get back some of the recognition they so desperately seek.
Despite having a formidable attack, the defense of Torino seems to be a bit of a concern having lost Glik and Peres in the same window. A keeper requires a steady back four in order to ensure an impeccable level of shutdowns. The attack needs to complement the defence. The former will be under pressure should the latter not do its job with certain levels of acceptance. There might be a slight concern for Hart as a result of the language barrier, considering he is the only English player meaning he has to switch lifestyles from English to Italian.
Joe Hart’s future at City will be under scrutiny but, personally, I believe he deserves to be at a top club which can recognize his attributes. Pep Guardiola seemed adamant to start with Willy Caballero once again, who, in my opinion, is in no manner a better keeper than Joe Hart. The arrival of Claudio Bravo might in the long run cement Joe Hart’s fate meaning that he will either carry on at Torino, provided they are happy with his services or a Premier League rival like Everton might grab the opportunity of getting a reliable player between the sticks.
Nonetheless, it is inevitable that Torino are the biggest winners here. They had a horrid season with a whopping 11 defeats in their final 17 games of the season. The lack of a good goalkeeper was believed to be one of the reasons for their flimsy form. Joe Hart will no doubt raise the standards in that regard and Torino will certainly benefit from this. With 3 points from their first two games, the club can look to move on with a season full of positive expectations.
