Hugo Lloris signs for LAFC in MLS

The French Goalkeeper leaves for the United States after a spell in North London with Spurs that spanned more than ten years.

It was an emotional day for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club on New Year’s Eve. It was a day that saw Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs secure a vital and comfortable 3 – 1 victory against Bournemouth in the final Premier League game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2023.

What took place beforehand brought emotion and an end to an era spanning more than ten years. Hugo Lloris said goodbye to the Spurs faithful ahead of the game with a move to MLS (Major League Soccer) side Los Angeles FC now confirmed.

The French stopper will be joining a club that is yet to start the 2024 MLS season, but in the 2023 campaign, the club finished in 3rd place after collecting 52 points from their 34 matches.

LAFC made it to the MLS Cup Final, but they succumbed to a narrow and heart-breaking 2 – 1 defeat against Columbus Crew. Cucho Hernandez gave Columbus the lead from the penalty spot (33’) before Yaw Yeboah doubled their advantage a few minutes later (37’). Denis Bouanga (74’) scored the only goal for LAFC.

So, Hugo Lloris will join a side that will look to go one step further and win the 2024 MLS Cup this season.

As mentioned earlier, the French Goalkeeper had a more than ten year spell with Spurs, eleven to be exact. Lloris’ stint with the Lilywhites began when he signed for the club from Olympique Lyonnais for a rumoured fee of €10 million (£8.6 million) on 31st August 2012.

The French Goalkeeper would go on to make his full debut for Spurs against Italian Giants Lazio in the UEFA Europa League. He would keep a maiden clean sheet in what was a 0 – 0 draw between the two clubs in the end.

As for his Premier League debut, Lloris was named in the starting eleven against Aston Villa at White Hart Lane on 7th October 2012. Lloris managed to keep another clean sheet in a comfortable 2 – 0 victory, with the goals for the home side coming from Steven Caulker (58’) and Aaron Lennon (67’).

Throughout the 2012/13 season, Hugo Lloris made 33 appearances in all competitions for Tottenham in his debut campaign with the club. 5 of these came in the Europa League, where he would keep 2 clean sheets to help his club reach the Round of 16.

He made 27 appearances in the league that term, keeping 9 clean sheets in a season that saw Spurs secure a 5th place finish after accumulating 72 points from their 38 matches. The Lilywhites finished just a point behind North London rivals Arsenal, who took the final UEFA Champions League spot in fourth place.

In the following season (2013/14), Hugo Lloris played 37 of Tottenham’s 38 Premier League matches, keeping a total of 14 clean sheets. Spurs finished 6th that season with 69 points, again securing their qualification for the Europa League.

Talking of the Europa League, in 2013/14, the Frenchman made 5 appearances in that season’s competition, keeping 3 clean sheets. The club made it to the Round of 16, losing 5 – 3 on aggregate against Portuguese heavyweights Benfica.

Hugo Lloris would continue to be a regular in the Spurs starting eleven in 2014/15, making 35 appearances in the Premier League and a further 6 in that year’s UEFA Europa League. Starting with the Premier League, the French stopper kept 9 clean sheets on the way to a 5th place finish after accumulating 64 points.

In the Europa League, Tottenham were knocked out by Fiorentina after finishing second in their group.

Lloris was never able to experience winning the Premier League title during his time with Spurs, but he and his Tottenham teammates came close to doing so back in the 2015/16 season. Whilst they did finish 11 points adrift of Champions Leicester City, the Lilywhites were in a close battle alongside the Foxes and Arsenal for much of the campaign.

This was not the closest that Lloris came to winning the Premier League title. This was in the 2016/17 campaign where he and his Lilywhites teammates finished in second place with only 7 points separating them and that season’s champions, Chelsea.

Juventus would knock Spurs out of the 2017/18 Champions League (4 – 3 on aggregate) in the last 16. In that year’s Premier League season, Lloris would keep a tremendous 15 clean sheets in his 36 appearances in England’s top flight. It was a third finish for the club that term with 77 points earned, securing them a place in the Champions League for the 2018/19 campaign.

Hugo Lloris would experience success with the France National Team in the 2018 World Cup, where he led them to their second ever World Cup after beating Croatia 4 – 2 in the Final.

The 2018/19 UEFA Champions League would be significant for Hugo Lloris and Tottenham, making it to the final, which saw them have the opportunity to become Champions of Europe for the first time in their history. Unfortunately for the Lilywhites, they lost 2 – 0 against Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool. Lloris kept 4 clean sheets in 11 appearances in that year’s competition.

That season’s Premier League campaign would see Spurs finish 4th after accumulating 71 points from 38 matches. Hugo Lloris made 33 appearances, keeping 12 clean sheets in total.

In the 2019/20 campaign, Lloris made 27 appearances in the Premier League, keeping 6 clean sheets on the way to a 6th place finish. As for that season’s Champions League, the Frenchman made 4 appearances with Spurs knocked out by Germany’s RB Leipzig in the Round of 16 on this occasion.

Hugo Lloris would go on to achieve the tremendous feat of playing and starting in all 38 of Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League matches in the 2020/21 campaign, keeping no less than 12 clean sheets in total. It was a 7th place finish for Spurs with 62 points, securing them a place in the 2021/22 UEFA Europa Conference League.

The 2021/22 season saw Lloris be ever-present in the Premier League for the second successive season for Tottenham, keeping an incredible 16 clean sheets. The Frenchman helped his team to a 4th place finish after earning 71 points from their 38 matches in the English Top Flight. Lloris and Spurs got knocked out in the Group Stages in that season’s UEFA Europa Conference League.

It was to be the 2022/23 season that would turn out to be his last as a regular member of the starting eleven. He made 25 appearances in the Premier League, keeping 7 clean sheets on the way to an 8th place finish for the Lilywhites.

Hugo Lloris has not appeared for Tottenham in the 2023/24 season, and he will now be joining MLS outfit Los Angeles FC.

During his time at Spurs, Lloris made 447 appearances, making him seventh on the club’s all-time appearance list. He also wore the captain’s armband for 9 years. The French Goalkeeper has made the most Premier League appearances of any Tottenham with 361, with leading goal scorer Harry Kane being the only other player to play more than 300 games in the Premier League for the Lilywhites.

Lloris also sits twelfth in the Premier League’s all-time leading clean sheets chart with no less than 127. This makes him one of only 17 goalkeepers to have kept 100 or more clean sheets in the competition’s history. (Stats via Tottenham’s official website).

Guglielmo Vicario looks to be a worthy successor to one of Tottenham’s all-time best Goalkeepers in the form of Hugo Lloris. Lloris will now move on to the next chapter of his career with Los Angeles FC in the MLS.

His farewell came against AFC Bournemouth on New Year’s Eve, and Tottenham’s next game will be in the FA Cup against Burnley on Friday, 5th January 2024 (8pm Kick-Off). Their next home match in the Premier League will see Ange Postecoglou’s side face Thomas Frank’s Brentford at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday 31st January 2024 in a 19:30 Kick-Off.

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