'It resonated....': Celtic title winner in Postecoglou endorsement as masterful man-management skills revealed

Following the shock resignation of Rodgers on Monday evening, the 60-year-old was immediately named as the bookies' favourite to make a sensational return to the club, just 28 months on from his departure to Tottenham Hotspur.

A management team consisting of Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney has been placed in interim charge of the club ahead of Wednesday’s league fixture with Falkirk. However, with the club hoping to appoint a new manager quickly and Postecoglou in the frame, Hart has hailed his former boss’ masterful man-management skills and revealed how he helped build a ‘family’ ethos during his time at Celtic.

“I was in such a flow in my career when my career went to a really high level,” said Hart. “I didn't really listen to anyone. I just went for it - there was nothing in the room that could have changed how I thought. It could have been positive, negative - I just absolutely adored what I was doing, felt like I was getting better and wanted more.

“Then it plateaued somewhat - to my surprise. I was desperate to get it back, so I was all ears open to everything. I drifted around in football for a bit, then I got to Celtic for my final bit and the way Ange Postecoglou spoke to me and before games, just really resonated with me. The way he spoke and the way he got us ready for games, the way he implemented how he wanted us to play regardless of what was going on around us. He really got through to me and made me feel good.

“Whether it would have resonated with me when I was younger and wasn't listening to anyone, I don't know. But at that age, I just wanted one last time to have a go. It was how he got into the mindset of the team and how he used analogies of examples of being together, being as a family and representing your family.”

Hart also shared his thoughts on current Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who was seen remonstrating with his defence in Sunday’s 3-1 defeat to Hearts, with the frustrated stopper seemingly lambasting his teammates in the immediate aftermath of the hosts' second goal from Alexandros Kyziridis. The former England goalkeeper believes Schmeichel’s reaction is little more than a storm in a teacup, admitting that it is commonplace within a club that is challenging for silverware.

“I think that's just sport,” Hart told The Overlap and Betfair’s Stick to Cricket show. “If you don't get that competitive environment - especially with Schmeichel, he was with people he'd been with a long time so you could have real conversations, you could have it out on the pitch. If you really want it, you can't have harmony all the time.

“If you're really going to push each other, it needs to be on the edge, you need a good coach who can say 'there's a time and a place. You need good players who can say 'go and have a fight or shut up'. I've seen loads of scraps, how can you not? It's football.”

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