Following the confirmation of his £26 million January move to Tottenham Hotspur, Napoli’s eternally-outspoken president Aurelio de Laurentiis was quick to point out that Bayern Munich were not the only continental giant left disappointed by the Romanian’s decision.
“There are clubs that are more renowned they have more attraction. And I never get angry (about that),” De Laurentiis told Tuttomercatoweb, the lure of the Premier League proving key in the former Genoa defender’s eventual switch to North London.
“See also Dragusin, to whom I offered more money than Tottenham. He preferred England even over Bayern. And you can’t fight (that desire).”
Dragusin’s impact at Spurs, it’s fair to say, has not been quite as pronounced as another Serie A import. Guglielmo Vicario may have only six clean sheets to show from his time at Tottenham so far but, barring a few issues at set-pieces, the Italy international has been one of the real bright sparks of a mixed campaign under Ange Postecoglou.
Guglielmo Vicario a £17m Spurs success story
Those who watched ‘Venom’ Vicario go from strength-to-strength at Empoli, however, will not have been too taken back by the cat-like reflexes he has displayed on a weekly-basis in North London. Giuseppe Taglialatela, the former Napoli goalkeeper, is one of those who spotted Vicario’s talents relatively early on.
“Fiorentina made a mistake in letting Vicario go (to Tottenham),” Taglialatela tells Radio Firenze Viola, the Europa Conference League semi-finalists arguably short of the requisite quality between the sticks.
“I recommended him several times to Napoli.”
Vicario, a relative late-bloomer at the age of 27, was rewarded with his first Italy cap in March and looks set to provide back-up for Paris Saint-Germain’s Gianluigi Donnarumma at this summer’s European Championships.
The former Udinese and Cagliari ‘keeper still has a fair bit to learn about English football – ex-Spurs boss Tim Sherwood feeling he has been ‘found out’ when it comes to defending corner kicks – but tack on a bit of muscle and fix that set-piece Achilles heel and Tottenham will have a potentially elite-level shot-stopper for years to come.
Ange Postecoglou pleased with Tottenham newbie
“For the most part, he’s handled it pretty well,” Postecoglou tells TNT Sports.
“It can’t be underestimated the impact he’s had, when you talk about a goalkeeper who has never played in the Premier League before. And he hasn’t come in from a massive club, only one or two years of Serie A experience.
“I just think he’s been outstanding. There have been a lot of games this year where he’s pretty much kept us in it with a big save or a big moment.
“For a goalkeeper in his first year of Premier League, still very young in terms of maturity and experience at the top level, I think he’s been brilliant.”