Rio Ferdinand reacts to Paulo Gazzaniga’s display in Spurs win

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Rio Ferdinand was impressed with Paulo Gazzaniga as Tottenham Hotspur handed their Champions League hopes a lifeline.

Rio Ferdinand told BT Sport’s live post-match coverage of Spurs’ win over PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday (07/11 from 22:00) that he was very impressed by Paulo Gazzaniga’s display, with his distribution proving to be what impressed the pundit the most.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men kept their hopes of progressing out of the group alive as two second-half goals from Harry Kane saw Tottenham turn the game around and ensure that they go into the final two fixtures of the group three points behind Inter Milan.

It looked set to be a frustrating night for Tottenham as they fell behind in the second minute. But there were some impressive performances from the home side, and Gazzaniga was arguably one of those who deserved credit for his display.

The Argentinian made a crucial save late on and showed some class when he was on the ball. And after the game, Ferdinand suggested that Gazzaniga gave Pochettino something to think about with his performance.

“He has a calming influence. And I thought today he made a couple of good saves. But I thought, more than anything, his distribution was tremendous, picking people out, little Cruyff turn,” he told BT Sport.

“I think he came in and justified his selection today and he’s really pushing to be the number two in this squad.”

It would be no surprise if Gazzaniga was soon considered Hugo Lloris’ first understudy. The former Southampton man continues to impress when he gets a chance and there have even been some fans who would prefer to see Lloris drop down to second choice.

Given his form when he has played, it is probably fair to say that Lloris can no longer allow for a slump in form as Gazzaniga is threatening to put some genuine pressure on the Tottenham captain. That would have been practically unthinkable one year ago.