Tottenham to bolster goalkeeping ranks with deal for Joe Hart

The former England goalkeeper Joe Hart is having a medical at Tottenham with a view to finalising a two-year deal. The 33-year-old is a free agent following his release from Burnley and would challenge Paulo Gazzaniga to be Hugo Lloris’s No 2, with Spurs looking for a third goalkeeper following Michel Vorm’s release last month.

Hart left Turf Moor on 30 June after two years at the club where he fell behind Tom Heaton and then Nick Pope in the pecking order, making three appearances in the 2019-20 season.

His career has stuttered since winning the Premier League with Manchester City and 75 caps for England. Pep Guardiola did not rate Hart and he was shipped out to Torino and then West Ham.

He could help solve a problem for Spurs as, under Premier League rules, clubs must name at least eight homegrown players in their 25-man squad and his English nationality would fill a slot.

If he wins the race to be Lloris’s understudy there will almost certainly be playing time for him because Spurs face a hectic schedule in the opening weeks of the season. Europa League qualifying clashes with the early rounds of the Carabao Cup, meaning José Mourinho may have to put out an under-23s team in the domestic competition.

Spurs made their first signing of the summer last week when Pierre-Emile Højbjerg signed from Southampton for £20m.