Photograph: Scott Heppell/Reuters
Hugo Lloris is primed to end his storied 11-and-a-half-year Tottenham career with a free transfer to Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer. The French goalkeeper will go with something of a whimper having endured a spell on the fringes at Spurs.
Yet there is no doubt about his status as one of the most important figures in the club’s modern history. Captain for the previous eight seasons, he made 447 appearances in all competitions and has an extensive catalogue of outstanding performances. Lloris’s chief regret, apart from the way he is set to slip out of the exit door without fanfare, will be his failure to win a trophy with Spurs.
Related: A class apart: France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris on threshold of history
Negotiations with LAFC are in the final stages and there is the feeling at Spurs that the deal is close to being confirmed. The winter transfer window in England opens on Monday.
Lloris, who joined Spurs for £11m from Lyon in 2012, had been expected to depart in the summer. Stripped of the captaincy by Ange Postecoglou, the 37-year-old was given the time to find a new club, with the chairman, Daniel Levy, understood to have given him his word that he could go on a free transfer, despite having a contract that ran until June 2024.
Yet Lloris turned down Lazio, Nice and clubs in Saudi Arabia, even though he knew that Postecoglou would not count on him after signing a new No 1, Guglielmo Vicario. Postecoglou also made it clear that Fraser Forster would be the No 2 goalkeeper.
Lloris still trained with the first-team group, as Postecoglou did not want to ostracise anybody; the manager has had no complaints over the 2018 World Cup winner’s attitude. But Lloris has had no match-day involvement, making it a jarring end to his time in north London.
