"It's a big pleasure to be training with him" - Vicario on working with Lloris
Thu 19 October 2023, 19:00|
Tottenham Hotspur
Guglielmo Vicario says training with Hugo Lloris has been a pleasure and has helped him settle in at the Club.
The Italian has made an impressive start to life at Spurs since his arrival from Serie A side Empoli in the summer and has been very reliable when called upon, making the highest save percentage of any goalkeeper in the Premier League this season (82.9%).
Guglielmo has kept three clean sheets in eight league appearances and made 29 saves so far (the seventh most in the division), with one of those nominated for Castrol Premier League Save of the Month against Burnley in September.
Watch - Vicario's incredible save against Burnley
The 27-year-old has had to quickly acclimatise to the intensity and rigours of England's top flight after being given the nod as our number one from the outset under Ange Postecoglou with our former Club captain also part of the goalkeeping unit. Under the tutelage of one of our longest-serving players with 447 appearances for the Club in Hugo, 'Vic' is flourishing in the role and is extremely grateful for the support he's received when training alongside the World Cup winner.
"I have to respect Hugo for his big career here at Spurs," said the goalkeeper. "With France he has achieved a lot and also played in finals for Club and country so I have big respect for him.
"He's a big guy, he helps me a lot during training. It's good for me because it's my first year abroad so I'm experiencing a new culture and way of playing football. The Premier League is different to Italy, so it's a big pleasure to be training with him and many thanks to him for what he's done for me."
Vicario has enjoyed a very encouraging start between the sticks in N17, showing off his reflexes with some eye-catching saves against Manchester United and Liverpool to go with his brilliant stop at Turf Moor.
Looking back on our last outing at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in our dramatic 2-1 victory over the Reds, the shot stopper made a stunning double save to first deny Cody Gakpo and then keep out Andy Robertson's rebound to keep the score level before we eventually went on to clinch a stoppage-time winner in an atmosphere that will stay with him forever.
"This moment could stay in your mind for life," said Guglielmo, when referencing the atmosphere in our Liverpool win.
"For your whole career you can't imagine this moment, the stadium felt like it was falling down! I have some memories that I cannot forget, so a big thank you to Spurs fans for this atmosphere."
Watch - 'Vic' makes class double save against Liverpool
Reporting back in at Hotspur Way after joining up with the Azzurri squad for recent internationals against Malta and England in the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifiers, Vicario rejoins our squad as preparations for Fulham on Monday night get under way as we look to continue our unbeaten start to the campaign.
"It's good that fans can dream big, but now we have to be focused on the reality and that is to prepare best for the next game against Fulham and then the next game after," added our number 13. "This is our mentality, we have to stay humble and focused because the season is so long."
