Everton manager Ronald Koeman has dismissed reports suggesting that Manchester City's Joe Hart was nearing a move to Goodison Park, saying his club had never registered an interest in the England goalkeeper.
Hart made his first start of the season for City in Wednesday's dead rubber Champions League win over Steaua Bucharest with City manager Pep Guardiola preferring Willy Caballero.
The arrival of Chilean keeper Claudio Bravo from Barcelona
on Thursday will push Hart further down the pecking order and is will
probably signal the end of the 29-year-old's 10-year stay at City.
"No.
Everybody is trying to improve. But I am not the type of manager to
talk about players. Everybody will see what the squad is on August 31," Koeman told reporters on Thursday when asked if
there was every any interest in Hart.
"There
is no interest (in Hart). We have a game at Stoke on Saturday and that
is more important than all the rumours. I need to prepare the team for
Saturday."
Koeman said this month that his
squad were only 70 percent fit after returning from a long holiday, and
the Dutchman was still not entirely satisfied with the fitness levels of
his players.
"We are improving. We are close
to 100 percent but I think some players did not get game time in
pre-season. Maybe they need one or two weeks more to get everybody on
the highest level," the former Southampton manager added.
Everton host Stoke City in the Premier League on Saturday.
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