Joe Hart: Burnley sign keeper for about £3.5m from Manchester City on two-year deal
Last updated on .From the section Burnley
Burnley have signed goalkeeper Joe Hart from Manchester City on a two-year deal for a fee in the region of £3.5m.
Clarets boss Sean Dyche has brought in the 31-year-old with fellow keepers Nick Pope and Tom Heaton out injured.
Hart, who has won 75 England caps, made nearly 350 appearances for City, winning two Premier League titles and one FA Cup, but fell out of favour.
"I was open to anything that came my way and because of circumstances here something popped up," he said.
"I feel like I'm in the right place and I feel like this is my time to kick on now," added Hart, who was not picked for England's World Cup squad, to Burnley's website.
"I've heard such good things about the atmosphere. They say it's priceless but to be part of a team where everyone is pushing in the same direction is not as normal as you would expect it to be."
Hart had been seeking a permanent move after City manager Pep Guardiola made it clear he had no first-team future.
The keeper made only one appearance for City after Guardiola became manager in 2016, spending the past two seasons on loan at Torino and West Ham, and was not part of the City squad which beat Chelsea 2-0 on Sunday to win the Community Shield.
Pope, who went to the World Cup ahead of Hart, dislocated his shoulder during their Europa League qualifying first-leg tie in Aberdeen and was replaced by Anders Lindegaard.
Burnley's other England keeper, Heaton, is still not fully fit as he recovers from a calf injury.
Hart would need to be registered by 23:00 BST on Wednesday to be eligible to play in the first leg of Burnley's Europa League third-round play-off at Istanbul Basaksehir on Thursday.
However, there are regulations which might allow Hart to play depending on injuries to other keepers.
Hart will be joined at Turf Moor by striker Matej Vydra, who joined from Derby County and central defender Ben Gibson, who arrived for a club-record-equalling fee of £15m.
City to pay tribute to Hart
City signed Hart from Shrewsbury Town in 2006 and they will host a tribute to him in the autumn to recognise his "outstanding contribution" to the club.
"Joe Hart's contribution to Manchester City cannot be overstated," said City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
"His 12 years at the club have seen him produce some remarkable performances and heart-stopping saves that will live in the memory for a long time to come.
"He will rightly be regarded as a City legend in perpetuity."
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Is he the keeper he was 5 years ago? No, but he's still perfectly capable at this level.
He also turns up and gives his best effort in training every day which is more than can be said for some.
Yes, there will be competition when Pope and Heaton return to fitness but that's what you want at a club.
Good piece of business for Burnley, and nice to see Pep keep his word on finding a solution for Hart. European football and regular game time for a hard working team.
Just look at the tributes on the City website: 348 games for the Blues, two Premier League titles, four times record winner of the Golden Glove, 75 caps - the man Messi called "phenomenal"!
Dyche knows what he's doing and Joe will rediscover his confidence at Turf Moor.
Thanks a million, Joe and good luck!
In 2015 Nick Pope was an out of favour keeper with Charlton Athletic and sent out on loan to League 2 Bury.
Burnley''s goalkeeping coach has worked miracles with those 2 and turned them into world class international goalkeepers. Wise move by Joe Hart to get his career back.
Dislocated shoulder is likely to be at least 3-4 months until Pope's close to playing.
I assume the transfer fee is small (5M maybe), as Guardiola has said several times that City were trying to make a move happen for him.
Good luck to him, some awesome memories, not least Dortmund in the CL and the Messi none shall pass 'Phenom' match.
I really hope Hart re-discovers some form and has a good couple of years, he'll have to if he wants to keep Heaton and Pope out of the team.
Thumbs up all round.