Guglielmo Vicario opens up on his problems defending set pieces at Tottenham

Guglielmo Vicario has admitted that he had a steep learning curve after arriving at Tottenham Hotspur last season, confessing that it took some time for him to get used to the physicality and speed of play in the Premier League.

Vicario enjoyed a fantastic debut season at Spurs

On the whole, there is no doubt that Vicario had a fantastic first season at Spurs, arguably being one of the best shot-stoppers in the division in 2023-24 and also helping the side play out from the back with his composure on the ball.

However, it was not always smooth sailing for the Italian, who remarked that he needed some time to get used to the differences after making the switch from Serie A.

Vicario told Football.London: “There are some situations you have to face where maybe it takes a bit more time for you to adapt. I can say the set pieces, maybe also the strength of the players and the speed of some of the attacking play.

“Of course, it is all about the process. So you have to remain confident in yourself, have to believe in your process, just that of course, and then you have to train a lot, you have to train hard and then get better and better.

“You have to give yourself that time to adapt. You know, life is like this. Sometimes you want to learn something new and you have to give time to yourself to adapt.”

Vicario struggled defending set-pieces

Vicario came in for a lot of criticism of his handling of set-pieces during the second-half of last season and the 27-year-old admitted that he has worked hard to rectify that weakness.

When asked about dealing with corners and free-kicks, the Spurs number one said: “It’s a part of the process. Maybe sometimes you don’t understand why [there’s a problem] and you don’t want to give yourself enough time to adapt, because you want to be ready as soon as you can.

“But I just can say that with a lot of work and, not just personally, but with the team, we can overcome these problems….but these are not problems. It’s about football and we just need to adapt to be ready for the season.”

Ange Postecoglou complained at times last season about the lack of protection for Vicario, even revealing that Spurs had reached out to the PMGOL to seek clarification on the infringement rules (Yahoo).

When asked if he had been given clarification on the rules, the goalkeeper said: “I don’t care. I don’t care. It’s about trying to find the best way to deal with that.

“So I will be ready this season much more than the last one. I don’t want to find excuses and speak about referees. They do their work, I do my work the best way I can.”

Spurs Web Opinion

It would be easy for Vicario to feel sorry for himself, given that he was not given sufficient protection by the referees at times.

However, the Italian has instead accepted responsibility and is looking to improve that aspect of his game, which is a fantastic sign for Spurs.

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