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Hart to be benched against Arsenal

By on December 13, 2013

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini confirmed that Joe Hart is set to once again be dropped to the bench as Costel Pantilimon takes his place in between the sticks when Arsenal visit the Etihad on Saturday.  Although Hart put in one of his first fantastic performances of the season as City came back from behind to triumph over Bayern Munich in the Champions League midweek, his poor form has forced Pellegrini to prefer Pantilimon once again.

This will be another blow to Hart’s confidence, which has been seriously dented by receiving just nine league starts so far this season.  The 26-year-old’s spot as England’s No1 is also in jeopardy despite the fact that Hart is entering his prime and has been the nation’s undisputed starter for nearly three years.

Yet the goalkeeper is set to be dropped for a crucial league match for City which could make or break their season.  Pellegrini’s side currently sit five points off of Arsenal, who are currently at the top of the table, and while a win would bring them within three points of Arsene Wenger a loss would put them eight points off the pace.  Pellegrini told reporters Pantilimon would be starting against Arsenal, yet was reluctant to confirm his goalkeeping choice earlier in the day, saying: “I trust a lot in Joe, he’s a very good goalkeeper. We’ll see when is the best moment to bring him back. Costel deserves respect. He is doing very well and the team are winning almost all the games. We have two goalkeepers and we’ll see when is the best moment [for Hart to] return.”

Hart has been on fine form in the Champions League, in which City progressed to the knockout stages for the first time after a 3-2 win in Munich midweek, but has been one of the biggest under-performers in the league this season, and has failed to appear at the weekend since City’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea in October.

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.