Joe Hart has smoothly transitioned from being a professional football player to a pundit. The former England international’s professionalism, knowledge, and articulation have pleased both viewers and other commentators.
When evaluating games and player performances, former goalkeepers provide a new viewpoint. Since joining BBC Sport and TNT Sports in 2024 after retiring, Hart has undoubtedly supplied the expert punditry that goalkeeping requires at the highest level due to its specialised nature.
However, in both current and historical football, who does Hart rank as the finest goalie in the world? The renowned Lev Yashin is ranked first in GiveMeSport’s list of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. The 1990-deceased former Soviet goalie is still the only “keeper” to have won the coveted Ballon d’Or trophy, and a FIFA honour has even been created in his honour.
However, Hart chose another goalkeeping legend over Yashin when asked to choose the best goalie of all time in an interview with TNT Sports. The former Manchester City player actually answered without hesitation.
Hart identifies an Italian icon as the greatest custodian of all time. The Englishman singled out Buffon.
“The greatest goalie in history?” When asked, the 37-year-old Hart firmly replied, “Gianluigi Buffon.” A lot of players and supporters today would agree with Hart. Buffon is without a doubt one of the best goalkeepers in football history. He played till he was 45 years old before ending his remarkable career in August 2023.
Over the course of his 28-year playing career, mostly with Juventus, Buffon won numerous significant team and individual accolades, including a World Cup with Italy in 2006. It was even more surprising that his son, Louis, recently chose to commit his international future to another nation, given that he was also capped 176 times by the Azzurri.
Hart and Buffon obviously have a lot of respect for one another. “I’ve been watching his game for a few years now, and Joe Hart is now for me one of the top three goalkeepers in the world,” the Italian stated back in 2015.
Buffon was watching Hart closely even as the Englishman was nearing the conclusion of his Celtic career. “The way Joe is playing this season is not surprising to me; he has always been a great custodian,” he told reporters in 2022, according to the Daily Record. All he needed was a home once more. I watched him grow as a player and recognised that he possessed all the necessary skills to be among the world’s top goalkeepers.
Words of support for Joe Hart from a legend of his trade—Gianluigi Buffon 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/CFUYpNawfV
— B/R Football (@brfootball) August 19, 2016
Hart Names World’s Current Best Goalkeeper
He named Thibaut Courtois as the world’s best, and Alisson as Premier League’s best
But with Buffon no longer playing, who does Hart think is the best custodian in the world right now? Hart named Alisson of Liverpool as the Premier League’s best custodian, but he also named Thibaut Courtois of Real Madrid as the best custodian in the world right now. Watch the full video:
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