Tottenham goalkeeper Vicario shines in 0-0 draw at Monaco in Champions League

MONACO (AP) — Thomas Frank became the first Tottenham coach to go unbeaten in his first three Champions League games.

He can thank goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

The Italy international made key stops to preserve a 0-0 draw at Monaco on Wednesday.

Monaco’s U.S. forward Folarin Balogun proved the biggest threat in the first half. Balogun, the former Arsenal forward, combined with Maghnes Akliouche in the 28th but was denied by Vicario one-on-one.

And eight minutes later, the keeper blocked another goal-bound attempt by Balogun.

The hosts continued to be more dangerous side in the second half.

Vicario was ready. He tipped behind substitute Aleksandr Golovin’s long-distance attempt in the 68th and produced another stunning save to turn away a header by Jordan Teze from close range six minutes later.

“When you don’t concede, it is always good,” Vicario said. “When you make a lot of saves, it is the best feeling you can have. It is a big point, but they probably deserved more. We were a little bit lucky in terms of the outcome.”

After substitute Takumi Minamino missed the target three times late, Spurs could be happy with a point, and a total of five from their first three matches.

“Monaco had a very good performance, and we needed to defend with everything at times,” said Frank, whose team registered just a single shot on goal. “Vicario was exceptional and really kept us in the game.”

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