Lloris feels vindicated by Spurs progress

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Hugo Lloris says his decision to stay at the club has been vindicated by the major progress made under manager Mauricio Pochettino.

Lloris was considering his future when Pochettino arrived at the club in 2014 after two seasons of upheaval during which managers Andre Villas-Boas and Tim Sherwood were sacked.But having stayed put, he has played a full part in a journey that has taken in successive Premier League title challenges and glamorous fixtures such as Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at Real Madrid.

“Does it justify my decision? Yes. From the first moment I believed in Pochettino and that’s it,” Lloris said, in comments published by British media outlets on Thursday.“I don’t need that (results) to say, ‘Yes, I was right at the time.’ It was just my feeling when I met him.

“Now I just enjoy the football we play. Sometimes in football, you live great moments, and you live some sad moments.“But there is a great potential in the squad, a great project in our club, and I am looking forward to seeing this development. I try my best to help the team and the club to develop too.”

At the halfway point of the Champions League group phase, Spurs are level on points with Madrid in Group H, six points clear of Borussia Dortmund and APOEL Nicosia.They have made significant progress since last season’s group-stage exit and the five disappointing Europa League campaigns that preceded it.

“This is what I said to them, to my team-mates: ‘Don’t forget that three years ago we were still in the Europa League,’” said France captain Lloris, who shone in the draw at the Bernabeu.

“Last season we discovered as a team the Champions League, but we were very disappointed with the performances that we had.“I think we built a strong confidence from the start of this competition, with a good win against Dortmund. We confirmed that win in Nicosia and you can see Dortmund drew (there), so it’s not an easy place.”