Chelsea coach pinpoints the one major flaw of Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris

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Hugo Lloris can’t be considered one of the word’s best keepers until he improves in the air, according to Chelsea goalkeeping coach Christophe Lollichon.

Chelsea goalkeeping coach Christophe Lollichon has been quoted in Le Figaro as declaring that he believes there has been too much fanfare surrounding the recent performances of Tottenham Hotspur’s Hugo Lloris.

Lloris, 28, has earned a reputation as one of the Premier League’s top shot-stoppers since arriving from Lyon in August 2012 for around €10 million, with head coach Mauricio Pochettino declaring him one of the world’s best earlier this season.

“I think he is one of the best goalkeepers in the world, not just the Premier League,” the Argentine told Sky Sports in September. “He is unbelievable.

“Neuer, Szczesny… I think there are a lot of good keepers. But Lloris is one of them.”

However, Lollichon, who has tutored the likes of Petr Cech and Thibaut Courtois at Chelsea since joining the coaching staff in 2007, believes the France captain is still too weak in the air to be mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Manuel Neuer and David de Gea.

“There is now a campaign in the country to say he is very good,” the French national newspaper has reported him as telling Journal Du Dimanche. “He is good on the line, but he is too average in the air.”

Lollichon might in fact have somewhat of a point, with Lloris’ 93 per cent success rate on crosses placing him towards the bottom of the top-flight’s regular starters.

In fact, Lloris’ numbers are down from last season, when he managed 98 per cent over his 37 league appearances, although his save percentage is up from 68 percent to 72 per cent after 25 matches this campaign.

He is no doubt a talented keeper, who still has some development ahead of him, but it’s clear there are still a few holes in his approach which need addressing on order to rival the likes of Neuer and De Gea.

Nevertheless, considering the latter is just now starting to show his full potential after four seasons in England, perhaps it won’t be until next term when Lloris begins to prove to the likes of Lollichon that he is one of the game’s best.