'Phenomenon' Joe Hart determined to stay grounded despite Messi praise

Finding himself confronted by a Who’s Who of the best players on the planet should, ordinarily, prepare the England goalkeeper for anything, though he admits Friday’s Euro 2016 qualifier currently represents a step into the unknown.

Over the next 48 hours his thoughts will turn to Deivydas Matulevicius of Romanian side CS Pandurii Targu Jiu, FK Kruoja’s Ricardas Beniusis and Leicester City teenager Simonas Stankevicius. The contrast could hardly be greater, yet the preparation will be just as meticulous.

“There’s no point me lying and coming in here and saying I know everything about Lithuania,” said Hart. “But we will know everything that is possible to know about them by the end of the week.

“We’ll know their strengths and weaknesses and I’ll know all about their attack and how they like to play.

“It will be watching videos and patterns of play, things like that, when they’ve been successful and unsuccessful, and trying to get as much footage as possible from their club sides.

“If you don’t plan then a goal can go in against you sometimes or something like that. I have always been aware that for all the good stuff, I could be the worst keeper in the world again in one game’s time.”

That reality is one reason why the plaudits showered upon Hart following his defiance in the Nou Camp last week have already been brushed aside.

Messi, smarting from seeing Hart save a penalty in the first leg, labelled him a “phenomenon” as time and again the world’s best player found his route to goal blocked either by quick thinking or instinctive reflexes. Luis Suarez, Hart’s one-time tormentor-in-chief, fared no better.

“It was a good night for me, making saves against some of the best players in the world,” said Hart, who will win his 50th cap if he faces both Lithuania and then Italy in a friendly next Tuesday.

“A lot of the time the duels were quite personal because of the way the game went. I worked out in my head that the way they play being five yards from goal doesn’t always mean they are going to shoot. They have other options so I was just trying to give them as least time as possible to make it easy for them.

“The one when I had to come out, I realised that Messi was in so I just tried to do what I could. On another day I could go flying past that ball or foul him.

“The only reason he missed the penalty in the first game is because he probably didn’t take it as well as he wanted to. I don’t think it was down to me.

“But I’m sure in years to come, when potentially he’s being honoured as the greatest player ever to play football, it will be a nice one to have.”

However, Hart does not rate Messi as the best goalscorer he has seen.

“Messi is a phenomenal player,” he said. “He scored past me last year with the outside of his foot. He managed to dink it back past my shoulder and didn’t have the momentum to do that, he shouldn’t have been able to do that, but it appeared like a very simple finish for him.

“He’s definitely one of the best players I’ve ever played against, but I’m backing Sergio because he’s my player and all that. He just knows how to score. A long clearance could turn into a goal because he’s got that ability to take it round five people and score. It’s a great thing to have.

“Sergio is a very natural player and in a situation one-on-one there is nothing complicated about it. He takes that option to score.”

This week it is England’s striking options, the elevation of Harry Kane and the longevity of Rooney that excite Hart. He remembers his eyes being opened by the sheer quality on the training pitch when he was first called up by his country with the Abu Dhabi billions yet to transform City.

“When I first arrived, flipping heck, they were the best players I’d ever seen,” said Hart. “When I was first at Manchester City, the players weren’t necessarily the same as they are now and maybe didn’t have the same quality they do now. So when I came in with England they were at the highest level I could be involved in.

“We’ve got some boys doing well in the Premier League and the manager does have some great options.”