Kaboul on old friend Hugo’s Premier League century
Sat 06 March 2021, 13:45|Tottenham Hotspur
Our former captain Younes Kaboul admits it came as no surprise to him to see his old friend Hugo Lloris recently reach the historic milestone of 100 Premier League clean sheets.
Friends since their teenage years, the pair came through France’s national team set-up from Under-19 level all the way to the senior side. They then united for the first time at club level in 2012 when Hugo made the move to north London from Lyon.
By that time, Younes was already in his second spell with us. Initially at White Hart Lane for the 2007/08 season, in which he picked up a League Cup winner's medal, the defender then spent 18 months at Portsmouth before resuming his Spurs career in January, 2010. On his return to N17, the defender helped us to our maiden Champions League qualification that season, he then played in our debut campaign in the competition before later being appointed as our captain in 2014.
Departing for Sunderland the following year, he then passed the armband onto Hugo, who has since gone from strength to strength in that role, leading our progression over the last six seasons. Then, in last Sunday’s 4-0 Premier League win over Burnley, he became just the 16th goalkeeper in Premier League history to achieve a century of clean sheets.
“It’s a massive achievement for him,” Younes smiled. "When you look at Hugo, he is someone with such calmness and someone who makes the right decisions in games - he is a great professional. I’m not surprised that he continues to keep producing great performances.
“He came to Tottenham having played Champions League football every season before with Lyon. He brought his knowledge of the game, his experience, his calmness and also, he is a very clever guy. So, he brought a lot to the team and he has been a big part of the Club’s recent transition.
“And to have won the World Cup as a captain in that time is something that brings even more respect to the man he is.”