Gianluca Di Marzio: Tottenham agree £17m plus bonuses deal for Venezia goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario
Gianluca Di Marzio has said Tottenham have agreed a deal in principle to sign Empoli goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario worth an initial £17million.
With Hugo Lloris looking for a new venture after 11 years in north London, Spurs are on the hunt for a new number one goalkeeper and writing on gianlucadimarzio.com the search has led to Vicario.
Brentford’s David Raya and Giorgi Mamardashvili of Valencia have both been heavily tipped with a move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
However, Di Marzio reports Tottenham have struck an agreement that includes further bonuses for Vicario, with a written offer yet to be submitted.
Big shoes to fill
Hugo Lloris has been a sensational servant to Tottenham for over a decade now, but patchy form and injuries marred his 2022-23 campaign and there is a feeling that now is the right time for the France World Cup winner to move on.
That said, whoever replaces Lloris next season has big shoes to fill.
In 26-year-old Vicario, they certainly have the right profile in terms of age and potential longevity to fill the gap for the foreseeable future.
Vicario has made 69 Serie A appearances over the past two seasons for Empoli having joined from Cagliari.
FBRef stats show that in total he conceded a respectable 39 times, with a goals against tally of 1.26 per 90 minutes.
Additionally, he had a save percentage of 73.9 and a clean sheet percentage of 22.6.
Perhaps just as importantly for a modern goalkeeper, especially one who will be playing for a high-octane, possession-based coach like Ange Postecoglou, Vicario had a pass-completion rate of 72.3 per cent last term.
A move to Spurs would represent a step up in terms of expectations, especially after the club missed out on European football last season and are desperate to get back.
But it is an opportunity Vicario will be desperate to grasp, and Spurs are certainly in need of players chomping at the bit to impress.
In other Tottenham news, Fabrizio Romano said Spurs negotiated a discounted fee with Juventus for Dejan Kulusevski.