Joe Hart is unquestionably one of the best Premier League goalkeepers of all time. The former England number one’s career may have declined at a breakneck pace after Pep Guardiola joined Manchester City, but there was no denying the brilliance of his peak years.
Furthermore, we’re talking about the man who has the joint-most Premier League Golden Glove awards in history, with four wins in 2010/11, 2011/12, 2012/13, and 2014/15, only matched by former Arsenal and Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech.
Not only was he a great shot-stopper for the eight-time Premier League champions when he was at his peak, but Hart’s intelligence and footballing IQ, like that of any high-achieving footballer, were important factors in his success as one of the world’s best goalkeepers in the early 2010s.
Hart’s Knowledge of The Game
The goalkeeper’s intelligence was beyond others
Shrewsbury-born Hart may not have had the footwork that Guardiola and his entourage were looking for at the Etihad Stadium, but he couldn’t fault the City legend’s understanding of the game.
Furthermore, Premier League experts may recall an incident between Queens Park Rangers, who have played in England’s second tier since the 2015/16 season, and Manchester City in 2014, which demonstrated Hart’s superior knowledge of the sport’s laws.
Even the most seasoned of supporters and professional players can be perplexed by football’s ever-changing rulebook from time to time, because there are always unique circumstances that can lead to unexpected results.
| Joe Hart – Club Career Statistics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Games | Goals Conceded | Clean Sheets |
| Manchester City | 348 | 347 | 137 |
| Celtic | 153 | 145 | 64 |
| Shrewsbury Town | 55 | 63 | 15 |
| Birmingham City | 41 | 46 | 12 |
| Torino | 37 | 64 | 5 |
| Burnley | 24 | 48 | 6 |
| West Ham United | 23 | 42 | 6 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 10 | 8 | 5 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 6 | 8 | 1 |
| Blackpool | 5 | 6 | 1 |
You only have to look at a question on The Chase about direct free-kicks into a team’s own goal resulting in a corner but no change to the scoreline that perplexed Bradley Walsh to see what we’re talking about.
And the aforementioned incident between QPR and Manchester City was so perplexing that Hart had to explain the rules to Charlie Austin after the game so he could understand why an earlier goal had been chalked off.
Bizarre Football Rule Came Into Play
It happened in 2014 when Manchester City visited Loftus Road
QPR’s Austin was left perplexed when he latched on to a scuffed free-kick from Hart, smashed the ball into the back of the net, and wheeled away in celebration only to discover that it couldn’t stand.
Why? Due to the ‘two-kick’ rule. Duh, right?
Of course, it’s not obvious, but the fact that Hart scuffed his kick so badly that he had to take two touches before the ball reached Austin, who leathered it past his compatriot, changed everything.
According to a BBC Sport report, the game’s ever-changing laws require free-kicks taken by the defending team in their own penalty area to be retaken if the first touch does not leave the box – which is exactly what happened over ten years ago.
If Hart had played a free-kick with two touches anywhere else on the pitch, the opposition would have received an indirect free-kick instead of a retake.
At the time, Hart maintained that he was aware of the lesser-known rule. He explained that he had hoped that his pass would land at the feet of Eliaquim Mangala, but it ended up near his compatriot, Austin. He said:
"I knew the rules and touched it twice. I'd touched it twice with my feet obviously. It's a mistake and not ideal but rules are rules. I was looking at Mangala to pass to him because I was aware of Charlie and it hit my right foot and left foot and went straight to him."According to the Daily Mail, Graham Poll clarified the situation: “Hart’s free kick was required to leave the box before the ball could be considered back in play – so by touching it a second time, he prevented the ball from becoming live.”
Hart Explains ‘Two-Kick’ Rule to Austin
The two Englishmen caught up at full-time
However, QPR’s line-leader Austin, who now plays for AFC Totton in the Southern League Premier Division South, was unfamiliar with the game’s quirkier laws, and footage with over one million views shows Hart explaining them to both him and Rob Green at full-time.
It just goes to show that you can live and breathe football every day of your life as a fan or a player, and that doesn’t stop the occasional remarkable situation from arising that makes you doubt your own knowledge.
As football fans, we hadn’t seen the ‘two-kick’ rule beforehand, and we’ve never seen it since on the Premier League stage and who knows if we’ll ever see it again, but that’s what made the incident at Loftus Road as uniquely bizarre as it was.
