Journalist claims time at Spurs was key to Ligue 1 club signing goalkeeper

French journalist Romain Canuti has revealed the season Pau Lopez spent at Tottenham four years ago was one of the main reasons Marseille decided to sign the goalkeeper on loan.

Lopez spent the 2016/17 on loan at Tottenham from Espanyol and served as Pochettino’s third-choice goalkeeper behind Hugo Lloris and Michel Vorm.

The shot-stopper returned to Espanyol at the end of the season without making a single appearance for Spurs.

The Spaniard had a couple of very good years following his return to La Liga, with Roma paying €23.5m (£21m) to snap him up from Real Betis in 2019.

Lopez was even linked with a return to Tottenham during the summer of 2020 but he ended up staying put at the Stadio Olimpico for one more season before being loaned to Marseille this summer after the Giallorossi’s acquisition of Rui Patricio.

The former Spurs loanee has impressed in Ligue 1 so far and was one of the stars of the show for Jorge Sampaoli’s side as they beat Lorient 4-1 on Monday.

Speaking after the win, Canuti insisted that Lopez’s time at Spurs was one of the main reasons the Ligue 1 giants decided to snap him up.

The journalist told Le Phoceen (as relayed by Sport Witness): “From the off, everyone made a mistake about him. He didn’t come because his former Real Betis goalkeeping coach was here. 

“In the end, if the Marseille staff ended up leaning towards him, it’s more because he’s a goalkeeper who, after his formation, was at Tottenham and therefore played high up the pitch, like is the habit of English goalkeepers.”

Spurs Web Opinion 

It is a shame that Lopez did not get opportunities during his season at Tottenham. However, going by his career trajectory since leaving the club, it seems like working with Toni Jimenez at Hotspur Way has certainly benefited the goalkeeper.

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