Joe Hart: England keeper lauded as world class save sees him compared to Three Lions legend Gordon Banks
Manchester City keeper, on loan at Torino, makes a string of stunning saves as Gareth Southgate's men struggled in Ljubljana
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JOE HART saved England from more humiliation with a world-class display.
The keeper — axed by Manchester City — produced a string of stops that brought back memories of Gordon Banks’ show against Brazil at the 1970 World Cup.
Hart admitted after his heroics: “My body is in pieces. I will struggle to get up in the morning.”
While Banks denied Pele, Hart thwarted Jasmin Kurtic — blocking the Slovenian midfielder’s close-range header with his left hand, then clawing the ball away with his right after 47 minutes.
The keeper, on loan at Torino, needed lengthy treatment after smashing into the frame of the goal.
Legendary commentator John Motson said: “Had it not been for Hart, England would have lost.
“His stop off Jasmin Kurtic was like Gordon Banks from Pele, one of the great saves by an England goalkeeper.”
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Atalanta star Kurtic had already played against Hart this season in Serie A.
He said: “I saw the ball inside the net.
“But we know that Joe Hart is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and that’s normal that he can make saves like that.
“Of course he is good enough to play for City still.
“But the coach made his choice and you can’t go against that.”
Hart made FOUR top stops in this World Cup qualifier.
Slovenia, a nation of just over two million people, are ranked 67th in the world . . . below Uganda.
But interim boss Gareth Southgate must have been fearing a repeat of the humiliating Euro 2016 KO by Iceland as his Three Lions side struggled all night in Ljubljana.
Their record of 14 consecutive wins in World Cup and Euro qualifiers was ended.
But that was not surprising as England did not manage a shot on target until the 56th minute and only produced three in total.
Even Wayne Rooney’s late introduction off the bench could not lift a side who had laboured to a 2-0 win over Malta in Southgate’s first game on Saturday.
England still stay top of Group F though and remain hot favourites to qualify automatically for the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia.
But coach Southgate was forced to admit: “We owe our goalkeeper for an outstanding performance.
“I had a long chat with him earlier in the week to ask him what he looks like at his best. He started with ‘calm and composed’.
“He’s been that in the two matches we’ve had. His decision making has been excellent, the use of the ball with his feet has been very good, and two or three of his saves were absolutely outstanding.
“He showed the level he’s capable of. He was top, top class.
“We didn’t start either half well and that has to be better.
“But I cannot ask more from the players over the ten days we have had together.”