England and Former Manchester City Star player SHOCKS everybody by announcing early retirement from Football

What happened?
The veteran custodian, who will turn 37 before his Celtic contract expires in the summer, retires after a brilliant career spanning two decades and 690 games for ten different clubs. He was capped 75 times by England and helped Manchester City win two Premier League titles while also winning the famous Golden Glove award for the most clean sheets in four consecutive seasons.

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THE BIGGER PICTURE
Hart’s football career began at his boyhood club, Shrewsbury Town, where he made his senior debut in April 2004. He later moved to Manchester City, where he established himself as one of the Premier League’s best goalkeepers, appearing in 348 games. He had played for Torino and West Ham United before joining Burnley permanently in 2018. Following a brief stay with Tottenham Hotspur, he joined Celtic in 2021, where he continues to demonstrate his goalkeeping abilities.

WHAT HART SAID:
“As of June, I’m going to stop playing professional football,” Hart stated. “This is something I have been thinking about for a while. There is no right or wrong timing, but the way this club operates right now has a lot riding on it. There’s a lot of heart and soul put into what we do as a football club, with the big picture, the fan base, and the conversations that go on around it.

“There’s definitely a talk about the goalkeeping position for next season, so I thought it was vital to get the word out with the club’s blessing [and] after speaking with Brendan [Rodgers] and Stevie Woods [goalkeeper coach]. It eliminates one possibility that people will have to guess on.”

Hart went on to say, “I feel great physically.” As good as I can for my age and what I’ve done to my body, I’ve been playing football since I was 16 years old. I’ve tried everything to keep myself in the best possible shape and position to give my all on game day, and I’m still at it. On game day, I truly peak, but I’m aware that time waits for no one, and I don’t want my body to retire me. That was one of the major considerations in my selection.”