Joe Hart plotting Green Brigade reunion for Celtic game as former keeper admits farewell tifo SCARED him

Joe Hart is planning to join The Green Brigade to savour future special Celtic moments with a club that celebrates properly.

The keeper retired last month having won a Double in his farewell term. Brendan Rodgers is now hunting a new No.1 to take Hart’s place, but the Englishman has set his sights on returning as a fan. He admits being stunned and even scared at the tifo display which greeted his final Parkhead appearance and wants to be part of it all again as a supporter.

Hart said: “I didn’t expect anything. I’d already got more than I ever could have asked for in terms of treatment, kind words and how my family were treated. Then I came out for the second-half and I love that corner, The Green Brigade. The energy that comes from that corner. That’s me. I’d happily be in there and I will be in there at one point in my life, the throb, the passion for the club.”

Asked how it felt in the moment, he continued: “Mad. It scared me a little bit. I’m not a guy who is scared, either. I always think, why not, let’s go. It just made me feel this is a lot of very good things happening. I was scared, but also feeling great at the same time.

“We had trophy lift, families on the pitch, that club celebrates properly. In the last 13 years, won 12 leagues and still every single trophy is celebrated like it is everything and I love that about the place. That was a special day that will live with me forever and ever.”

Celtic added the Scottish Cup to that Premiership title seven days later, but, speaking to the High Performance Podcast, Hart lifted the lid on a strange scenario which preceded the last-four success over Aberdeen.

He said: “Semi-final, missed a penalty, saved a penalty, like the story was getting a bit silly. I actually said in the warm-up to goalie coach Stevie Woods, I’m catching everything, everything I am doing is right, I feel really, really uncomfortable because it didn’t feel it should go that way. Life doesn’t work like that, does it?

“I said just keep me grounded. I’m enjoying it, but I’m aware. We were 1-0 down after three minutes, so that was a nice little whack in the chops!”

Hart also revealed a change of heart after the club asked to mark his time in Glasgow with a special evening of recognition. He said: “I got to do something really unique because football is a fast business.

“I told a truly special football club that I wanted to finish with them because I loved them more than anything else in football. I wanted to finish strong and I got into a beautiful flow, the team really clicked.

“The buzz of the club, no matter how many trophies they win, when you are playing well, it’s an absolute buzz. The drums are going, the fans were singing, the flares were going off, and it was just an incredible feeling.

“And then they asked me to do a night with Joe Hart, to which I immediately said no, because I said when I wanted to retire that I didn’t want to talk about it, I wanted to do what I need to do because the team comes first.

"Then I said: You know what? scrap that. You were willing to do that for me? That’s absolutely beautiful. I don’t feel comfortable doing it, but I’m going to do it because for you to even ask me to do that is special.”

Hart described the emotions of playing for Celtic and said: “Always something on the horizon, always some sort of madness bubbling away, brewing. Always an adventure around the corner. Just a high-octane place to play football and a really enthralling thing I absolutely loved.”