Tottenham Hotspur completed a deal to sign Guglielmo Vicario from Empoli earlier this summer.
The 26-year-old has now joined the North London club and his move to the Premier League has irked the former 1982 World Cup-winning goalkeeper Giovanni Galli.
Galli feels that Vicario’s move to the Premier League will be a blow for Italian football.
He believes that the 26-year-old would have inspired the next generation of young players in Italy, and he should have continued in Serie A.
“It is for our youth. The Italians must stay in Italy, they must be the reference points for the goalkeepers of the future,” Giovanni Galli said (h/t TuttoMercatoWeb)
“It’s true that football is now global, but who watches Donnarumma in France? The healthy spirit of emulating is lost.”
Tottenham needed to sign a quality goalkeeper this summer, especially with the way Hugo Lloris has regressed over the past year.
The 36-year-old Frenchman is no longer the player he was and he looked like a shadow of his former self last season.
Lloris has a contract with Spurs until the summer of 2024 and he is expected to move on as a free agent next year.
Meanwhile, Vicario should prove to be a quality replacement for the French international goalkeeper.
The 26-year-old Italian has done quite well for Empoli in the Italian league and he has the quality to succeed in the Premier League as well.
He will be hoping to take the next step in his career and the opportunity to play in the Premier League can be hard to turn down.
Tottenham paid €20 million for the 26-year-old goalkeeper and he will be expected to hit the ground running.
Spurs conceded vital points because of Hugo Lloris’ error-prone displays last season and they will be hoping that Vicario can make a big difference at the back.
