Former Fiorentina goalkeeper Giovanni Galli believes the Serie A outfit should have ‘immediately’ snapped up Guglielmo Vicario before Tottenham Hotspur took the Italian to the Premier League.
During his introductory press conference as Tottenham’s new head coach this week, Ange Postecoglou made sure to explain the role his new £17 million goalkeeper would have in North London.
“In terms of how quickly the players embrace (my style of play), the new players coming in will help,” Postecoglou tells The Athletic. “That’s the part I have control over. Whether that’s James Maddison or Guglielmo Vicario in goal.
“They’re players who fit in the direction I want to go in, which helps.”
The implication being, of course, that both Maddison and Vicario will help Postecoglou’s Tottenham adapt to a more proactive, front-foot approach, after spending the last few seasons sending an unhappy fanbase into a stupor with their defensive-first tactics.
Guglielmo Vicario is Tottenham’s new goalkeeper
Vicario, something of a late-bloomer at 26, is one of those typically ‘modern’ goalkeepers. Not only a fine shot-stopper – as evidenced by one outstanding triple save last season – but also one who can double up as an extra outfield player when his team have possession.
The likes of Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United and Inter Milan expressed an interest before the ex-Empoli glovesman put pen to paper with Spurs, while there has been some bafflement over why Fiorentina did not make a move of their own.
“(Current Viola goalkeeper Pietro) Terracciano did a good job,” Galli tells Gazzetta dello Sport. “But there is a void to fill.
“For 20 million euros, I would have immediately gone to get Vicario.”
A former Udinese man – like another Spurs newbie in Destiny Udogie – Vicario is likely to start next season as Spurs’ new number one.
Hugo Lloris is still a Tottenham player. But, with the purist Postecoglou looking for a more all-round option between the sticks, the Frenchman’s more-than-decade-long spell as Spurs first-choice appears to have come to an end.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
