Andy Dunn from The Mirror
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You know it is a crisis when support verges on sympathy. That is how it is with Joe Hart.
The extra round of applause in the pre-match roll call, pundits tripping over themselves to absolve him of blame, an exaggerated cheer for a routine save and man-hugs all round after the final whistle.
He even did a spot of passionate badge-tugging as he disappeared into the tunnel, one of the last to exit.
Boy, he knows the pressure is on.
“The players, staff, manager and fans trust in Joe Hart,” declared Manuel Pellegrini.
Yep, sure they do.
They would like him to get back to his commanding best… but trust?
It is questionable whether even his defenders trust him right now.
Harsh? Perhaps. But Hart has to be judged by his own exacting standards. By those standards – and he would certainly like to think they are world class – Hart was again at fault for a goal.
He was not the only one at fault, for sure. Joleon Lescott was doubly culpable with some remarkably dozy defending in the first place.
But Romelu Lukaku gave Hart a reasonable chance to make the save – and he did not take it. Right now, when Hart gets a hand to a ball, there is every chance it is merely to delay the inevitable by just a fraction.
Romelu Lukaka of Everton rounds Joe Hart of Manchester City Saved... just: Romelu Lukaka of Everton rounds Joe Hart of Manchester City
Michael Steele
If Hart was not mired in such dubious form, his role in Everton’s only goal of a captivating match might have gone relatively unnoticed.
The second half indecision – whether to clear or take a loose pass back into his own area – would not warrant a mention, nor the strictly unimaginative distribution.
But Hart, rightly, is under forensic examination. Not just as a result of his abysmal evening against Bayern Munich but for a calendar year pockmarked with uncertain moments.
Maybe it all started 12 months ago in Warsaw when he lost his bearings for the goal that earned Poland a point.
The Poles will be presenting themselves again in ten days’ time and English hopes of automatic World Cup qualification will be at stake.
And you can cling to a couple of standard sliding stops and a good effort to divert a Kevin Mirallas header (which, typically maybe, was rendered irrelevant by an assistant referee’s flag) as flimsy evidence that Hart’s class is permanent.
But there is no doubt he goes into this international twin bill with inconsistency an unwelcome companion.
Of course there really is no international debate to be had. When your alternatives are, with respect, Fraser Forster and John Ruddy, any discussion is brief.
The alternatives at the Etihad are not much more serious. This was Hart’s 121st consecutive Premier League appearance. Reserve keeper Costel Pantilimon has not played a minute in the competition. No wonder Pellegrini ended his own debate on the side of Hart.
Yet while Roy Hodgson’s choice is Hobson’s choice, Pellegrini will surely bring in sterner rivalry for Hart in the transfer window.
He needs it. And he probably realises it. When he dropped on to a straightforward shot from Arouna Kone late in the game, he smothered it with a body load of relief.
“England’s No.1,” came the appreciation from a smattering in the stands.
True enough. But whether that is something to celebrate remains to be seen.
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