Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart has stated his belief that the club are "blessed" when it comes to their defensive options.

The champions currently have the best defensive record in the Premier League, having conceded 24 goals from their 27 outings.

Discussing that statistic, Hart insists that a big reason behind it is the fact that the current City squad has strength in depth when it comes to defenders.

"We are so blessed with quality defenders. People forget Maicon and Micah [Richards] are out injured as well as Vincent Kompany," he told the club's official website.

"But Matija Nastasic has been a sensation. For his age, he is like a rock. Kolo [Toure] is Kolo - you know you are going to get with him because he gives everything he's got.

"There's also Joleon Lescott waiting to come in and that's not even mentioning Zaba (Pablo Zabaleta), [Gael] Clichy or [Aleksandar] Kolarov, so I think we are really blessed when it comes to defenders."

Despite having the best goals against column in the division, City are 12 points behind leaders Manchester United with 11 matches left to play.