Luciano Spalletti’s remark after the Nizza friendly has become the defining transfer quote of Juventus’s summer. Asked about Guglielmo Vicario, the manager did not offer enthusiastic endorsement. He offered something more interesting — and considerably more pointed.
“Vicario is an experienced goalkeeper who has gone through some situations, one of them serious. He is a strong player. But there is something to understand: why did a club like Tottenham decide to leave him out? What evaluations did they make?”
It is not a rejection. It is a question. And La Gazzetta dello Sport’s backstory reveals that the question has already been answered — and the answer has removed the reservation.
The Reason Tottenham Dropped Vicario — and Why It Does Not Concern Juventus
Spalletti’s concern centred on Vicario’s shoulder surgery in March and the subsequent decision by Roberto De Zerbi to exclude him from Tottenham’s pre-season tour of Australia. Those two facts, placed together, raised an obvious question: is there something medically or technically worrying about this goalkeeper that a club with Tottenham’s resources has concluded disqualifies him?
The answer, La Gazzetta reports, is emphatically no. The exclusion was a footballing and squad management decision, pure and simple. Vicario had requested a transfer away from North London in order to guarantee playing time and maintain his Italy national team place, and De Zerbi subsequently omitted him from the pre-season tour as confirmation that the club was actively working to find him a new home. The shoulder operation was successful, the recovery complete. The exclusion was an exit signal, not a medical verdict.
Suzuki: Admired but Out of Reach
Spalletti was equally candid about the other goalkeeper option. “Suzuki I like very much — he appeals to me because he is a goalkeeper of enormous potential. If you look at the press coverage, he is a name being pursued by the strongest clubs.” “But for the moment he is prohibitively expensive in terms of costs and possibilities, because the complications are sometimes of various kinds. We must also keep our expenditure in order.”
With PSG now moving ahead in the Suzuki race, the path for Juventus leads clearly in one direction: Vicario, available on loan from Tottenham, fit, motivated, and ready.
The Deal Gathering Momentum
With the backstory behind Tottenham’s decision now fully understood by the Juventus technical staff, and with Spalletti’s initial hesitation resolved by the explanation provided, the loan deal for Vicario is advancing with real momentum. The Italian international is ready to return to Serie A, Tottenham are ready to sanction the loan, and the club are ready to give Spalletti the experienced, proven goalkeeper he needs before the season begins.
One public question, one honest answer, one deal edging closer. The goalkeeper situation, the last of the summer’s great unresolved stories, is approaching its conclusion.
