Guglielmo Vicario kept a clean sheet in Italy’s 2-0 win over Moldova in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers on Thursday.
Vicario has been excellent for Tottenham these past couple of weeks after a difficult start to the season.
The Italian keeper was made a scapegoat at Spurs for his Premier League performances, but it has since become clear that Vicario has been Tottenham’s most important defensive player this season.
And it seems Spurs’ number one keeper is as efficient for his country as he has been for his club.
Guglielmo Vicario shines over Gianluigi Donnarumma
Vicario was one of several Tottenham stars called up for international duty over the November break.
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While he is not Italy’s starting keeper, Gennaro Gattuso opted to play him over Manchester City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma against Moldova. And given the scoreline, it seems the manager made the correct choice.
Against Moldova, Vicario showed his ability to manage the game, where he maintained order and discipline, according to Sky Sports Italia on 13 November.
Meanwhile, Football Italia rated his performance a six, pointing out that he only had one save to make and gathered one ball in what was a “quiet evening” for the Tottenham ace.
His opponents only had one shot on target, one off target and one that was blocked across the 90 minutes.
Indeed, the general consensus throughout the Italian press was that there was not really anything to judge Vicario on at all.
While uneventful, the win means that Italy are almost guaranteed to finish the group in second place thanks to Norway’s 4-1 win over Estonia earlier that night.
How has Guglielmo Vicario performed for Tottenham this season?
There was a point in time when Tottenham fans wanted Antonin Kinsky to replace Vicario for the foreseeable future.
But after Kinsky’s dreadful performance against Newcastle United in Spurs’ 2-0 Carabao Cup defeat, fans have gained a new sense of respect for Thomas Frank’s number one keeper.
The Italian has prevented 4.40 goals, according to Sofascore, which is the most in the Premier League this season.
He has conceded just 10 goals in 11 games, seven of which have come from inside the box and has also made 34 saves thus far.
Furthermore, Vicario’s runs out per game have been 100 per cent successful, he has won 80 per cent of his total duels and has kept four clean sheets.
All in all, while he doesn’t receive the appreciation he deserves, Vicario has been one of Tottenham’s best-performing players in the Premier League this season.