There are very few football fans in the Premier League who would say Hugo Lloris isn’t a good goalkeeper.
In fact, you’ll find very few football fans who wouldn’t consider Hugo Lloris a great goalkeeper.
However, L’Equipe on Thursday have a double page spread on the Tottenham shot stopper questioning whether or not the Frenchman is capable of being decisive enough to win his country the Euros.
Their main argument suggests the 29-year-old hasn’t really had the chance to prove himself, and the last time he had the game of his life for his country was all the way back in 2009 against Ireland.
You know, *those* games.
Given 8/10 and 9/10 by L’Equipe in both respective legs of the playoffs, the keeper has since failed to really stand out when called upon.
He’s been solid, but nothing special.
It isn’t easy being France’s goalkeeper, with constant comparisons to the likes of Joël Bats and Fabien Barthez, two players who were part of great teams winning international tournaments.
While Bats never did anything special during the 1984 Euros, there was a confidence that he would stop anything thrown at him when called upon, he made the country feel safe, and that helped them win.
As for Barthez, well, his displays on France’s road to World Cup triumph in 1998 and then in 2000 will never be forgotten.
Hugo Lloris doesn’t have memorable moments like they do. Yet.
Being part of teams losing 2-0 to Spain in the 2012 Euros and 1-0 to Germany to a Mats Hummels header in 2014 have stopped him from being *that* guy.
As Barthez puts it, “you’re nothing without the others”, and Lloris has never had ‘others’ like his predecessors.
There haven’t been any Platinis or Zidanes in his teams, players who have carried the team through tournaments.
But L’Equipe quickly, with the help of experts, come to the conclusion that this could be it, this could be the tournament where he joins Bats and Barthez, and his early performances have reassured them.
He has his faults, sure, nobody is perfect, but this could be his chance to reach that Hall of Fame status, captaining his country and saving their skin all the way to Euro 2016 success.
All he has to do is win the bloody thing.
No pressure, then.
