Joe Hart says Manchester City’s thirst for competing at the top will spur them on after they were ‘killed’ by a late deflection in Wednesday’s agonising 1-0 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich.
Ex-City player Jerome Boateng scored a last-minute winner for the German champions in the opening group game, breaking the heart of the Citizens’ keeper.
Hart looked to have earned City a point with a stellar performance at the Allianz Arena, but his old team-mate struck from the edge of the box in the 89th, taking a slight deflection off Mario Gotze.
“We did okay and looked like we were going to get a result out of it, which would have been a good start to the group away against a good side,” Hart said.
“But it was an unfortunate deflection that ended up going in, and that killed us.
“I had a bit to do, but we defended well on the whole and had a few chances. It could have been the perfect performance and we come away with a 1-0 win, but unfortunately we ended up with a loss.”
The last-gasp winner was hard to stomach for the English shot-stopper, but was made doubly worse given that the goalscorer was a former team-mate.
“Jerome’s a good guy and someone I got on well with – you can’t hold personal grudges on a football field,” the 27-year-old said.
“It was the deflection more than anything. Either I would have got it or it would have gone wide had it not hit the guy, but that’s football.
Rather than dwell on the loss, Hart is already looking towards their mammoth Premier League clash against Chelsea on Sunday.
“It doesn’t get any easier for us but that is the beauty of playing for this side, big game after big game,” Hart told the club’s website.
“We like to think we’re big game players and we can step up again before Sunday.”
A win for Jose Mourinho’s side could put them eight points clear of City after just five games, while Wednesday’s loss was not the ideal start for the Premier League champions as they seek to make a lasting impression on Europe this season.
However the selfless Hart said City’s confidence at home (past the midway point of last season they averaged nearly four goals a game at the Etihad) could be the difference against Chelsea, having seen how hungry Bayern were to win in front of the Allianz Arena faithful.
“Away from home against Munich you are going to play a bit differently than you would at home and they maybe needed the win that little bit more than us,” said the England keeper.
“I always seem to have plenty to do when we play in Germany, against good sides, but unfortunately it didn’t affect the result.
“I’m not here for headlines – if I was, I would probably have quit.”
