Tottenham’s Vicario on taking risks, Lloris’ advice, UCL hopes،
Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou was worried about whether the Premier League club would adopt his innovative style of play, but perhaps the best demonstration of his success is the transformation of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.
Harry Kane's departure to Bayern Munich added to Postecoglou's intention to radically change what had gone before and created the feeling of a club at a crossroads last summer. Somewhere in the middle of this maelstrom was the need to identify a new captain and goalkeeper for the club after Hugo Lloris declared his desire to leave after 11 years in north London.
Vicario, 27, has exceeded all expectations to succeed in his first season in England, so much so that he was named Goalkeeper of the Year at last week's London Football Awards after signing up if wholeheartedly in favor of “Angeball” that he believes it could redefine the sport. .
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“We have to take risks playing from the back because it's one of the situations we work on every day,” he told ESPN. “We can have a lot of solutions on this. You play with a high line, so you have to be prepared to take some sweeps outside the box. But I think this could be the new era, the new way of playing the game. football. Of course, we train every day and I really enjoy it.”
Vicario was a surprise replacement in several ways. Firstly, Spurs were pursuing David Raya from Brentford, but felt the initial transfer fee of £40 million was too high for a player with one year remaining on his contract. Arsenal ended up signing Raya on a season-long £3 million loan deal with the option to sign him permanently for a further £27 million.
Additionally, Vicario had only been playing top-level football for a few years after making his Serie A debut in April 2021 for Cagliari before moving to Empoli three months later where he played a further 31 league matches. Empoli finished 14th in Serie A as Vicario kept just seven clean sheets, but Postecoglou was convinced enough to make him his second signing for £17m, after Spurs turned Dejan Kulusevski's loan spell from Juventus in a permanent deal.
Vicario was considered calm and intelligent with the ball at his feet, but Empoli's defensive style rarely allowed him to showcase his passing range. What is perhaps more surprising is the level of composure the Italian showed despite limited experience; he hasn't made a single error leading to a goal this season and only two errors leading to a shot, and hasn't dropped a single cross.
Perhaps most impressively, his 'goals prevented' rating – expected goals from shots on target measured against actual goals conceded – is +6.15, the largest differential in the Premier League. Only seven goalkeepers have a higher figure than this in Europe's top five leagues. He has had some spectacular individual moments, being nominated for all but one of the Premier League 'Save of the Month' awards this season.
“It’s a completely different style of football from what I’ve had to play in the past,” says Vicario. “But I think it's just about working hard and trying to work as a team, because the goalkeeper I know is the only player who can catch the ball with his hands, but you have to work a lot with the line of defense, with the four defenders.”
Lloris has been a help rather than a hindrance before joining LAFC in December 2023. The French captain announced his intention to leave Spurs last June after making his 447th and final appearance for the club, but he did not failed to agree on a summer transfer despite interest from Lazio. Saudi Arabia and Nice, where he began his career. Postecoglou allowed Lloris to continue training with the first team even though he would not be considered for selection in the event of anything other than an extreme injury crisis involving Vicario and his number 2, Fraser Forster. The situation could have been tense, but Vicario insisted that was not the case.
“We practiced every day and he was one of my teammates, so I was trying to follow every advice, everything I could try to give him,” Vicario said. “He was very nice to me, trying to talk to me and help me settle in as quickly as possible. He did that and I'm very grateful to him.”
But did he feel pressure to replace such an iconic figure as Lloris? “Pressure is a word that we find everywhere in football,” he replies. “It's not about thinking too much about who was before you. I have immense respect for what Hugo has done and for what he has done with me as well in our training over the last few months. was a huge goalkeeper, a huge human being in the way he played and behaved with me.
“Great respect for what he has achieved in his career, he is a World Cup winner, captain. So I think pressure is everywhere in football, so you don't have to think too much and concentrate only on what we have to do on a day-to-day basis,” adds Vicario.
Vicario has previously spoken about the influence of Italian goalkeeping legends Gianluigi Buffon and Dino Zoff, both from the same region of Udine where he was born. But to further facilitate his adaptation, Vicario studied the goalkeepers currently playing in England and singled out two individuals.
“In the Premier League, there are a lot of top goalkeepers. I like to observe each goalkeeper in their behavior, their way of stopping, their style of goalkeeping,” he says. “[Aston Villa’s] Emi Martinez and [Liverpool’s] Alisson are for me the two best goalkeepers in the league so if I have to say someone, I say these two guys because they do incredible things, they play with risks, take risks playing from the back, they are very brave to come out and clarify situations, so of course I turn to other goalkeepers.”
Tottenham are in a battle with Martínez's Villa to win the Champions League next season. It is possible that five English teams could qualify based on complicated calculations linked to UEFA coefficients, which change depending on the performance of teams from different countries in Europe this season. But the working assumption is that the traditional four places are available and that fourth-placed Villa hold a five-point lead over Tottenham, who have a game in hand. The teams face off in a crucial clash at Villa Park on Sunday.
“It's important for everyone to try to play in the Champions League,” said Vicario, who has never played in Europe's premier competition. “Of course it's one of our goals to achieve. We know it's difficult because we have to play teams every week in the Premier League and it's tough against everyone.
“I don't think we need to think too much at the end, but just focus on doing our best game after game. Our goal right now is to try to win the next game. If you work to win the next game, you can do it. maybe think at the end of the season about where you are.
“Of course, it's one of the best competitions in the world. I watch when I stay at home, it's one of the best football shows in the world.”
Whatever happens, Vicario believes Spurs' future is bright: “We are a very young group, it's the first season we play together with the new manager, so we have to stay calm and try to concentrate .and I work hard every day because I think we can be something special in the next seasons.”
