Guglielmo Vicario — Welcome to Spurs

Guglielmo Vicario was signed on the back of the pursuit of Brentford goalkeeper David Raya. Spurs had been pursuing the Spanish keeper who plied his trade on the other side of the Capital, but the Bees were demanding a fee that the club deemed to be far too high. Out of nowhere, it was announced the Spurs were approaching a deal for the Italian international, and that it’s completion would be imminent. Spurs fans scrambled to learn more about the keeper that would seemingly be taking the reigns from its club legend and captain, Hugo Lloris — what we learned, was that he was a very talented shot-stopper who helped keep Empoli in Serie A, but we didn’t know much else.

Football fans well-versed in the analyzation of data got to work and from the surface, the only difference between the profile of Vicario and the profile of David Raya was more tactical in nature, as Vicario played in a very low block at Empoli, where Raya was at Brentford who were not afraid of taking matches to their opponent. And it was clear that when it came to shot-stopping, the two were almost like-for-like. The only differentiation that really stood in was the price-tag that each club was quoting for their respective keeper. Spurs would end up paying 17,200,000 Euros, more than half of what Brentford were quoting for Raya.

(BBC)

The preseason consisted of mixed emotions around the new keeper. Half of fans were saying that he was awful, with the other half claiming to be quite impressed. This is of course, no more than modern football coupled with social media platforms, but regardless, he had some good moments alongside some not-as-great. This is quite standard for a keeper, especially one that was playing behind a newly formed (forming) backline, and Vicario would grow throughout the preseason, improving with each match. He would end up making his debut against Brentford in week-1, recording four saves, receiving a yellow and in the 26th minute, and not doing much else of note as Spurs and Brentford would eventually draw 2–2.

(Spurs Web)

Vicario would then have an opportunity to truly cement himself as a viable #1 with Spurs welcoming Manchester United to North London and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in week-2 of the Premier League season. Manchester United, under Erik Ten Hag, have been an attacking force that was known for making keepers work, despite their slow start (and eventually win) in week-1 vs. Wolves. Spurs fans weren’t necessarily expecting a win, but as opposed to the previous three seasons, they were expecting a high-octane and entertaining match, and I think that Spurs fans were content with this. However, Spurs would of course trump expectations, playing Manchester United off-of the park in a 2–0 victory, and Vicario was a huge part of that result.

Vicario is known for being strong in winning balls that are played in over the top of the defense (what SofaScore would call, “high claims”), which is an attractive aspect to a keeper playing behind a high line. This in-itself was important as Rashford looked a threat in-behind for much of the earlier stages of the match, but Vicario would do so much more, making ten saves and posting a statistic of 1.19 goals-prevented. Most impressively, eight of those ten saves were from inside the box, as Vicario proved himself to the Spurs-faithful as an excellent shot-stopper. I know that this is a heavy comparison, but two of his saves, one of which was from Casemiro at very close range, reminded me of some saves that Gianluigi Buffon made throughout his career. It’s no coincidence that the Italian legend has publicly-spoken very-highly of Vicario, especially as Guglielmo recently earned his first cap for the Italian National team.

(Sky Sports)

In short, Spurs needed a successor to Hugo Lloris, and they needed to ensure that the goalkeeper position did not account for a significant amount of the available transfer budget, as many upgrades were (and still are) required. Not only did Vicario meet the financials requirements, he has also impressed on the field. Spurs seem to have found a real gem in the Italian, one that at twenty-six years of age, can be with the club for at least the next decade. And beyond Vicario, Spurs seem to be gravitating back towards their strategy of finding talent in the rough, as is evident by the Vicario signing, and I personally believe this to be a positive. Spurs have spent money very poorly since their rise to the top under Mauricio Pochettino, and sometimes a flailing club needs to find its foundation in order to plant its feet and kick on.

Guglielmo Vicario, welcome to Spurs.