Hugo Lloris had a right to feel hard done by during Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-0 Champions League defeat to Sporting Lisbon in the Portuguese capital. It looked as if the veteran shot-stopper had salvaged a valuable point for his out-of-sorts side during the dying seconds on Tuesday night, proving that there is life left in this old dog with a fabulous fingertip save to claw a Pedro Porro curler away from the top corner heading into stoppage time.
Those of a nervous disposition will have needed to be quick on the mute button, however, as Paulinho flicked the resulting corner into the back of Spurs’ net just seconds later; Lloris’ exasperation shared by all of those who had made the long trip from London to Lisbon.
The France captain will celebrate his 36th birthday on Boxing Day. But, realistically, how much longer can Tottenham expect Lloris to belligerently defy the rules of Father Time? The long-serving goalkeeper, as he showed against Sporting, is still capable of producing gravity-defying saves at the very highest level.
But it would be naïve to suggest the pursuit of a replacement can wait for a rainy day. Lloris has shown understandable signs of ageing over the last couple of seasons, after all; high-profile errors creeping into his no-longer flawless game.
34-year-old Fraser Forster, the only other senior stopper in Antonio Conte’s squad, is very much a back-up too. And while the transfer window only closed a couple of weeks ago, do not be surprised if plans are already being drawn up for a new goalkeeping addition in the summer of 2023; a player capable of 1) competing with, and 2) eventually replacing one of the longest-serving players in the Premier League.
Do Tottenham Hotspur need to sign a Hugo Lloris replacement?
The Giorgi Mamardashvili ship, however, may have sailed already. Signing for less than one million euros from Dinamo Tbilisi just a year ago, Mamardashvili reportedly caught Tottenham’s eye during a promising debut season at La Liga giants Valencia (Marca).
“Giorgi Mamardashvili has helped us a lot,” says Los Che team-mate Gabriel Paulista. “He’s a great goalkeeper.”
With the 21-year-old Georgian picking up where he left off during an excellent start to the new campaign. Mamardashvili is more than deserving of a new, long-term contract. One complete with an eye-watering pay rise. The youngster, Marca say, stands to ‘multiply his salary tenfold’.
What’s more, his release clause will rise to £86 million. For context, Tottenham could have had him for just £17 million. That’s if they’d triggered the existing clause in Mamardashvili’s contract before the September 1st deadline.
A decision they may stand to regret. Especially when you consider that Lloris and Forster will have a combined age of almost 80 this time next year. It’s certainly hard to imagine Spurs finding a goalkeeper with the Frenchman’s leadership skills, longevity and elite-level quality for less than £17 million.
Lloris is once again proving that reports of his demise have been greatly exaggerated. He might not be the force of old, but he’s still got plenty left in the tank.
But signing Forster, rather than a young, up-and-coming glovesman like Mamardashvili, feels like a classic case of kicking the can down the road.
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