Inter Milan tried until the very end to win the race for Guglielmo Vicario before Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur completed a £17 million deal for the former Empoli goalkeeper.
Recently, the Italian’s father admitted that Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United had made enquiries during the January transfer window, only to find out that Empoli had little interest in cashing in while a relegation battle was very much ongoing.
Inter Milan, Champions League finalists and Coppa Italia winners, were left equally frustrated in their pursuit of Guglielmo Vicario a few months later.
Tottenham made Vicario the second new signing of the Ange Postecoglou era; completing a £17 million deal for a confident, ball-playing goalkeeper who should take Hugo Lloris’ place between the sticks.
That meant Inter missed out. Though not for a lack of trying.
“Inter called me until the last available day,” Empoli president Fabrizio Corsi tells Tuttomercatoweb. “But we had already received documents from the correct people (at Tottenham).”
Tottenham win race for goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario
26-year-old Vicario arrives at Spurs with only two seasons of first-team football under his belt. There will be questions asked about whether the 6ft 4ins glovesman is ready for one of the most high-pressure positions in English football, with Tottenham initially targeting the ‘Premier League proven’ David Raya before deciding that £40 million was too much for a man with just one year left on his contract.
“I didn’t believe this opportunity (would come). I told my agent; ‘it’s my first choice. I want to go to the Premier League and a big club like Spurs’. For me, it’s so exciting,” Vicario tells the Tottenham website.
“I want to learn a lot of things because the culture of football in Italy is so different. I need to adapt quickly to my team-mates, to the style of play, so many differences between Italian football (and the Premier League). The fans are amazing as well, the buzz when you play well. I love this mentality.”
Vicario joins James Maddison in North London. Spurs are also expected to complete the signing of former Fulham winger Manor Solomon this week.
Inter Milan, meanwhile, are still in the market for a goalkeeper. The Nerazzuri will likely lose Andre Onana to Manchester United.
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