Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario joins Tottenham Hotspur from Empoli

• Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario from Serie A side Empoli on a five-year deal
• The 26-year-old Italian is set to be the replacement for Hugo Lloris, who has twelve months left on his contract

Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario from Serie A side Empoli on a five-year deal.

According to Sky Sports, Tottenham Hotspur have paid an initial £17.2 million for Vicario’s transfer. The deal also includes bonuses on top of the initial fee paid. Vicario will wear the No 13 shirt for Spurs.

Guglielmo Vicario has signed a five-year deal with Tottenham Hotspur. Photo/ TEAMtalk.

The 26-year-old Italian is set to be the replacement for Hugo Lloris, who has twelve months left on his contract. Lloris’ eleven years at Spurs could end this summer as he already signalled his intent to seek a new challenge elsewhere.

Spurs had been searching for a long-term successor for Hugo Lloris who is also the club’s captain. Discussions took place with Brentford to sign their No 1 goalkeeper David Raya but his £40 million price tag forced Tottenham to look for other alternatives.

The arrival of Vicario now switches Spurs’ focus to the future of Lloris. The World Cup winning goalkeeper could be allowed to leave anytime this summer if a suitable offer arrives. Fraser Forster played a significant role last season when Lloris was injured.

Guglielmo Vicario is Tottenham Hotspur’s second signing of the summer under new manager Ange Postecoglou. This is after midfielder Dejan Kulusevski turned his loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium into a permanent move.

While announcing his signing, Tottenham Hotspur described Vicario as a “commanding goalkeeper with the ability to play out from the back”. The 26-year-old will now attempt to establish himself in the English Premier League and follow in the footsteps of Carlo Cudicini. Carlo played in England for Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

Guglielmo Vicario. Photo/ GH Gossip.

Born in Udine, Italy, Guglielmo began his football journey with Bearzi, joining Udinese’s youth team in August 2013. During the 2014-15 season, he was loaned out to Fontanafredda where he made 30 appearances.

Vicario joined Venezia in the summer of 2015 and made a total of 89 appearances across all competitions during his time with the club. He kept a total of 28 clean sheets and played a significant role as the club earned a promotion to Serie B and also winning the Coppa Italia Lega Pro.

After spending four years with Venezia, Vicario joined Cagliari in the summer of 2019. He went out on loan at Perugia and made 39 appearances before returning to the Rossoblu and eventually making his Serie A debut in April 2021.

After seven appearances for Cagliari, Vicario joined Empoli on a season-long loan. The deal was made permanent the following season. During his two years at Empoli, the Italian goalkeeper made 71 appearances.

Vicario’s impressive performance saw him receive his first call-up to the Italy squad in September 2022. He was an unused substitute as Italy suffered a 1-0 loss to England in European Championship qualifying. He was on the bench during Italy’s matches against Albania and Austria.