BBC Sport pundit moots Tottenham exit for Guglielmo Vicario after what happened v Everton
Pat Nevin has suggested that Guglielmo Vicario’s spell at Tottenham could come to an abrupt end after his antics against Everton.
The BBC Sport pundit has told the Italian goalkeeper to “muscle up” or his time at the North London club will be short.
The comments come after he rolled around on the floor following Everton’s equaliser in the 2-2 draw at Goodison Park on Saturday (3 February).
“Everton’s Sean Dyche was never going to miss an opportunity like this to put pressure on the Italian stopper at the weekend,” Nevin wrote for BBC Sport. “Everton’s first goal was from another in-swinging corner kick and the second from a free-kick that the keeper was not committed enough to attack, while Jarrad Branthwaite was.
“The real giveaway was the reaction of the Spurs players as Vicario rolled around ‘in agony’ after the challenge. Not a single teammate went over to console him or check on his well-being. They cannot say it out loud, but they had lost confidence in either his ability, his strength or maybe worst of all, his bravery.
Postecoglou is not one for making excuses. The problem for his keeper is that Ange does not want his players looking for excuses either. When Premier League teams spot weakness in the opposition, they have all the sympathy of a great white shark that has not fed for a fortnight. Vicario has to muscle up or his time here will be short.”
Everton target Tottenham ace
Whether Sean Dyche wants to admit it or not, a lot of his tactics revolved around targeting the Tottenham number one.
Vicario has proven to be a superb signing for the North London club, having joined from Empoli last summer. His shot-stopping and reactions have helped Ange Postecoglou’s side massively this season, but his aerial pursuits have been a different story.
Vicario’s issues in the air were apparent earlier in the season against Manchester City, a match that Dyche undoubtedly watched before Tottenham came to Merseyside on Saturday.
Right from the very first whistle, the home side bombarded the goalkeeper when it came to both free-kicks and corners.
And it massively paid off, with Jack Harrison’s tap-in coming from a corner and Branthwaite’s late header coming from a free-kick, with Vicario perhaps expected to have done better in both situations.
Dyche certainly won’t care how his players find the back of the net this season, as long as the goals keep coming in their fight for survival.
In other Everton news, Gary Neville has predicted a transfer explosion as he dropped a Toffees verdict live on Sky Sports.
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