Shropshire Star

Dave Edwards was Joe Hart's landlord!

Wolves midfielder Dave Edwards is aiming to make Joe Hart pay again - after revealing he used to charge the England goalkeeper £50 rent as his landlord.

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Hart shared a house with Edwards during their time together at Shrewsbury Town, after the latter bought his first home.

The friends are preparing to face each other in Thursday's crunch Euro 2016 clash in Lens.

Hart played in England's heartbreaking late draw 1-1 with Russia, while Edwards helped Wales beat Slovakia 2-1 in Group B on Saturday.

He is likely to start again after the weekend's victory in Bordeaux and admits he cannot get his head around the former housemates playing in France.

Edwards, who has 33 caps for his country, said: "We became very close.

"When I bought my first house in Shrewsbury - it was just a two bed terrace - Joe rented a room off me and helped me with the bills,.

"It was £50 a week - mates' rates. We split the shopping, but he was terribly messy.

"At that point he was just starting to get interest from bigger clubs and different sponsorship deals, so there was boxes of clothes and boots everywhere - he was very untidy.

"We're really good friends and still speak now, the possibility of playing against each other in a major tournament is bizarre.

"Joe and I came through together. He was a year below but when I joined at 16 he was already playing for the under-16s.

"We were the two who stuck together in the youth team and when we started training with the first-team."

Hart moved from Shrewsbury to Manchester City in 2006, while Edwards joined Luton Town in 2007 before signing for Wolves a year later.

It's not the first time the friends have faced off as Edwards scored the winner against Hart when Wolves beat Manchester City 2-1 in 2010.

But he knows group leaders Wales will have to be at their best to beat Hart, at the Stade Bollaert and rates him as one of the best in the world.

He said: "It's amazing how far we have come. Joe is on another level, a Premier League winner and in a good England team.

"At Shrewsbury. he always stood out. He looked like a 25-year-old when he was 16 or 17, he was very commanding and always had that presence. I always knew he would be a top player.

"Manuel Neuer, David De Gea, Hugo Lloris - he's definitely among them."

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