The centre of attention for the Italian press following his surprise loan move to Torino, things appeared to have calmed down a bit surrounding Joe Hart.
Quietly going about his business between the sticks in Italy, the Manchester City loanee has been performing well for the Serie A side, whose form sees them placed seventh in the table, only three points behind Europa League spots.
Conceding 12 goals in 10 games and keeping two clean sheets, Hart seems to be really enjoying himself in Italy, and revealed in La Stampa that a move to southern Europe was recommended to him by a former Manchester City employee.
He said: “I’m going to be honest, it all happened so quickly and I didn’t have too many choices in front of me, but I’m grateful to Torino because they gave me a solid opportunity. I grew up watching Italian football on TV, I’d been to Turin before and it always seemed intriguing.
“Also, I talked to people that I trust, including [Patrick] Vieira, who knows the place. He said: ‘Go, you’ll be fine there’. He understood my situation and knew that I needed to play in a serious team.”
The former Shrewsbury goalkeeper explained that if he is in Turin today, it’s because ‘there were no paths left for him’ at the Etihad under Pep Guardiola.
Only on loan for the current season with no buy-out clause in the deal, the player is likely to return to Manchester City at the end of the season, something he’s trying to ignore for now.
Hart said: “I want to enjoy this season at Torino. I’m not thinking about the future.”
Leaving the problem for ‘future Joe Hart’ to deal with, the England international just wants to play football.
And who can blame him?
