Numero Uno!

Que pasa, mi amigos!

Spanish 101 done for the day. Been a while since I've done a thread so I'm sure you were all buzzing when you saw this pop up

Today's topic: Number one goalkeeper.

18 months ago I'd have never dreamed of writing such a thread but we're in a bit of a predicament. Hugo Lloris has generally been amazing for this club, yet last season there was a huge dip in form, he was second in "errors leading to goals" in the Premier League and general mistakes were becoming too frequent. A mixed summer then ensued, where he won the World Cup (despite a huge cockup in the final) but was charged with drink driving. Now a third of the way into this season, Hugo's form has hardly improved. Two mistakes in the Champions League and almost one in the Prem but for a goal line clearance from Toby has seen question marks thrown over Hugo's long term future as number one for the first time in his Spurs career.

During this time, Gazza has taken his chances to full effect. Including his one appearance last season, the sexy bastard has 4 MOTM awards in just 6 games, including some penalty shootout heroics. While shot stopping and a commanding presence is something all three of our keepers possess to different degrees, Gazza has set himself apart with his technical ability with the ball, being able to make long range passes and even throwing in a Cruyff turn!

It's generally accepted that players in form retain their place, we've seen it with Lucas and last season with Dave Sanchez, yet we've not seen it with Gazza.

So, the question I now pose (you'll notice I've put in a poll), is it now time for Poch to install Gazza as first choice goalkeeper for a considerable amount of time (until he ****s up basically) or will Hugo recapture his form soon and show he's still the right man for the job?

 

It's a real conundrum and I haven't voted because I can't decide.

On Hugo's side - he's been our captain for years and I'm fairly sure Poch trusts him as a voice in the dressing room, he's just captained the World Cup winning side, and 18 months ago he was easily top 5 in his position in the world. I can't think that his recent decline in form will be permanent and at 31 he easily has a few years left at the top if he can recapture his form and not get injured. He hasn't become a bad keeper overnight.

Against him, mental fatigue for all manner of reasons seems to be catching up and he's made a few bad decisions on and off the pitch. We are also all well aware of his weaknesses at the near post and with distribution, both of which have been issues since day 0 for Hugo and neither of which have ever been addressed in any meaningful way over the years. For a GK of his otherwise excellent quality this is a glaring pointer to a lack of effort or ability to address these issues. There is also a sense amongst many of us here that having a GK, and not a noticeably vocal one at that, as our captain perhaps has affected our leadership on the pitch in various circumstances over the last few years. Long term (let's say hypothetically we drop him for the rest of the season and he then asks to leave this summer to ensure he keeps his France place ahead of the Euros) this could be the opportunity we have been waiting for to give the armband to a senior outfield leader in the dressing room - I would pick one of Verts, Kane, Toby or Dier in roughly that order of preference - and see if that addresses some of the issues we have all picked up on regarding on-field leadership.

I think Gazza is a fine keeper and at 26 he has years left to keep adding to his game. I feel confidence when he keeps goal for us that I do not feel when Vorm does and I think the players feel it too. It would be a huge statement if Poch were to drop Lloris for a meaningful period of time, particularly because I think they have an excellent relationship and Hugo really is his trusted lieutenant. Then again this could be the opportunity we need to correct what may have been a long term problem for us, and given Hugo is 31, captain of France, and Buffon's contract comes up next summer at PSG, this could be a perfect storm for us to flog him to the Paris Qatari enclave and quite probably make our money back on a 30+ year old without weakening the team in a major way.

 

Gazza for now - for the reasons I gave on the Palace thread

Let Hugo play 2nd fiddle for a bit - and switch back if Gazza’s form dips in the same way.

 

If Ghoddle10 was still posting here, he'd definitely say Vorm...

 

Lloris should keep his place at the moment, in my opinion.

Gazzaniga's going to have chances to prove himself and he's done well when called upon, but he's not there yet, for me.
Give him the League Cup game and the next Champions League game, as Lloris is still banned.
Those should tell us a lot about how we stand.

 

If he was still posting here I probably wouldnt be

 

You have to take into account the way we play and Hugo is the sweeper keeper that allows us to play a high line, he is rapid off his line (occasionally erroneously) and can snuff out danger before it happens. Gazza has done well but he is a different style of goalkeeper, and up to now has looked dodgy on set pieces into the box.

 

9 votes to 7 so far in Hugo’s favour. It’s good to see we now have a strong contender and competition for Hugo’s spot, Vorm has always been a great backup but I don’t think we’ve ever seen him as someone who could dislodge Hugo on a long term basis. If Gazza’s form doesn’t help Hugo to up his game and make him rediscover his form pre-17/18 then nothing will.

 

What stands out for me is Gazzaniga's communication. He's far more vocal than Hugo, which is ironic considering he's our captain (will never understand that choice!)

If our defence has been dicking around (which they have a lot of late), he's at them yelling and giving commands. If a player is not doing their job, he'll tell 'em. All I hear from Hugo is "away!" every time a cross comes in. It gets repetitive and doesn't really mean anything other than to tell the defenders to deal with the ball instead of him.

My main issue is... Hugo's not captain material. And I frankly hate it when keepers are made captain.

 

LLoris' form has been a bit sketchy of late. Add to that been nicked for drink driving, tells me his head's probably not in the right place ATM. A few weeks on the sideline might help refocus.

Gazza deserves his chance for a run of games IMO.

 

Personally I think we are blessed to have 2 quality keepers and nothing against Hugo but I think Gazza deserves his chance the way he has performed so far when called upon.

 

10 votes each now, so as my old granddad would have said, 'one more each and they'd be level'.

Gazza deserves his chance. But the chance has been missed, it should have been his to lose.

 

I think there’s still time for Gazza to put serious pressure on Poch.

Hugo produced a great save yesterday but he was still very shaky and flapped at a corner that luckily went unpunished.

Either way it’s near enough win-win for us, if Hugo ups his form then we know his quality, if he still remains shaky then Gazza should get more chances as he’s yet to deliver a poor performance. The only way there’s a ‘lose’ option is if Hugo’s form doesn’t improve but Poch persists with him, ultimately potentially costing the team.

 

Or Gazza loses patience and leaves for regular games.....it would be financially and strategically stupid to see him go... Maybe a more formal rotation is an option.

 

I think the main benefit of having Gazza around is that, with him showing what he's capable of when he's been given playing time, that should give Hugo a kick up the backside to keep performing at the level we expect - something which has never really been the case with Vorm, who always felt like a keeper signed for the cup competitions and nothing more.

It's similar to how Poch signed Trippier and Davies to motivate Walker and Rose to play at their very best, as there's no better motivator than having a capable replacement who's itching for playing time sitting on the bench, or a few years back how Redknapp signed Friedel to give Gomes reason to cut out the mistakes if he wanted to keep his place.

 

I find this a very difficult question because Gazza has looked so confident in his appearances that I cannot see a lot wrong with him as a number one keeper.
On top of that I have never been entirely convinced of the high status of Hugo. I never feel confident in him to deal with corners and crosses and his normal facial expression appears to be 'worried'. The other side of that coin is the low number of goals that Spurs concede and the feeling that Hugo halts many situations in the bud by his early running out for the ball. There is no doubt he makes some fantastic saves and I have this suspicion that because he IS so good he makes saves that other keepers would be stretching to the limit for and in the process look more spectacular. His distribution is not often brilliant and it's not unusual to see him make poor passes.
So why did I vote for Hugo? I think because overall our defensive record is good so why tamper with it. It's purely subjective of course but atm I think Gazza is not as good as I think he is and Hugo is better than I think he is. On that basis I trust MP to make a better decision than I would right now.

 

I've voted for Gazza because he is in form.

Poch needs to toughen up with his favourites of which Hugo is one.

Yesterday I was listening to the City game and someone made the point that quality competition keeps players on their toes. If Gazza only gets game time because Hugo is suspended or it's a 'not so important' cup tie then that suggests Lloris's form is not in question. However it is and he needs a stint on the bench to think it through in some PL matches.

What he does have that Gazza hasn't really shown is the sweeper keeper ability...his weapon has become his Achilles heel though so he definately needs some time on the bench.

 

Hugo can't do cruyff turns Gazza can

 

If Hugo had done that we would be questioning why he had to do that to get himself out of a situation he shouldn't be in in the first place.

 

We wouldn't

Only if he messed it up, which is highly likely tbf