Tottenham confirm Joe Hart transfer as ex-England keeper, 33, joins for free on two-year contract

TOTTENHAM have confirmed the signing of Joe Hart on a free transfer.

The goalkeeper, who has 75 caps for England, left Burnley at the end of last season having failed to make a league appearance in over 18 months.

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On Tuesday, Spurs confirmed their third signing of the summer after Alfie Devine and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's arrivals.

A club statement read: "We are delighted to announce the signing of Joe Hart on a contract until 2022."

With Hugo Lloris down as Jose Mourinho's custodian for the upcoming campaign, Hart is expected to compete with Paulo Gazzaniga for Spurs' back-up spot.

Fellow shot-stopper Michel Vorm left North London on a free transfer last month.

Another useful facet of the deal, from a Tottenham perspective, is Hart can easily fit into their 25-man squad as a homegrown player.

Arsenal and Celtic were also linked to Hart, who underwent an impressive body transformation to beef up over lockdown at the age of 33.

In June, the goalkeeper asserted that he is still the same player who won two Premier League titles with Manchester City in the early 2010s.

He told the BBC: "The fact I have had to sit on the bench for 18 months in the Premier League is not going to define or crush me,

"I remember who I am. I remember playing for my local Sunday league team and trying to get into the Shrewsbury Town first team.

"I learned early - you need to keep things in perspective.

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"You can have great things said about you in football, but you have to be strong on self-criticism, analyse what you are doing and be comfortable with it."

He cheekily added: "I am under no illusions that Real Madrid are going to knock my door down, get Courtois out and bring me in."

The four-time Premier League Golden Glove winner has struggled to find form in spells at Torino, West Ham and Burnley after being shunted out by Pep Guardiola when the Spaniard landed in Manchester.