Hugo Lloris inspired Pete Sampras as kid; now straight shooting criticism that called him France’s Achilles heel

Hugo Lloris was an absolute star in the semifinal parrying away stingers zipping at him from Moroccan wings, ensuring France made their second successive final.
Pulling off a stunning save to stop El Yamiq, the French captain and goalkeeper effectively calmed nerves when his outstretched hand punched out the bicycle kick to keep a clean sheet, and safeguard the French lead.
His strong showing against Morocco followed an even stiffer challenge against England’s itchy strikers. It was the English media in fact, forever in a hurry to bury premiership reputations, that had called Lloris the Achilles heel of France, the weak link. When the casual condescension cascaded, the youngsters in the French squad were apparently so staggered that their captain was being targetted that they found it surreal, and responded with an added edge on the field.
According to RMC, “The Blues were shocked the words of the English tabloids. Many young people discovered this level of intense scrutiny at the World Cup for the first time. They don’t need much to be over-motivated. The English press will however succeed in motivating them a little more. The group is shocked the tabloids which make captain Hugo Lloris the weak link in the France team.” Not too enamored the Tottenham Hotspur keeper, the English press had identified the 35-year-old as weak.Subscriber Only StoriesPremiumPremiumPremiumPremium
It brought the team together a little more. “The players unite behind their goalkeeper, in front of criticism which they find surreal for a player who has played in the English championship for years and who has proven himself in the Premier League. Hugo Lloris will provide the answer on the pitch, as he had promised at a press conference, ” RMC wrote.

Lloris on his part would empathise with Harry Kane who missed the second penalty, and even text his Spurs teammate. “It was not easy to find the words” when he texted Tottenham team-mate Harry Kane after his side had knocked England out of the World Cup in Qatar. It’s a difficult time for the England national team and Harry. We had a text after the game. It was not easy to find the words. He needed some time to rest. I think he can be proud of what he has done for the national team. In football hory, many top players have missed penalties in their career – Lionel Messi, Criano Ronaldo – but I have no doubt Harry will keep his chin up and help Tottenham and the national team to shine,” he had said.
Pete Sampras inspiration
Lloris made his France debut in 2008 and became the most-capped player in national team hory with 143 appearances. He equalled Manuel Neuer for 19 matches as goalkeeper, the most in World Cups after the Morocco game. In his four World Cups, Lloris has missed just two matches – the pool game against Denmark in 2018 and against Tunisia in 2022, with Steve Mandanda stepping in.
However he started out in sport in tennis, where he bizarrely wound up wanting to be a football goalkeeper.
Speaking to French radio station Europe 1, in a interview broadcast some months back, Lloris had described his childhood in the south of France and how he chose football over tennis.
“Well, to give you a little story, I started with tennis. And it was in the tennis club that I started to dive around,” he narrated. “Don’t ask me why, but I wanted to go in goal and to stop friends’ scoring feet, to go and block balls head first. The boss of the restaurant, who was also an amateur goalkeeper, said to me instantly, ‘you have to go and play football’ and that’s how things started.”
But tennis was his first love, and a tough sport to move on from. “I started with the little yellow ball. But from there to imagining a career, I was a long way off but I had to make a choice at the age of 10. The constraints of training, especially football, where they were asking me to train four or five times a week, plus weekend matches, so it made things difficult after school. And I chose this path.”
“But there’s still some tennis in me,” he continued. “I grew up watching my dad play it. My grandma played tennis for a long time too. And then when I started to walk, with my very first steps, I had a racket in my hand. My main idol is Pete Sampras. He’s the only sportsperson I had a poster of and I was a huge fan. I try to play once a year when I’m on holiday,” he told the broadcast.
Slow burn of respect
It’s not just the British press that casually cast him as a weak link. The French need constant reminding too, though it is down to his heroic saves that their free flowing forwards owe all the basking in glory for keeping the defensive end watertight.
Lloris’ compatriot xxx Lenglet would say earlier in the week: “To all French people, he’s a legend because he’s a very good person, a very good professional, an amazing goalkeeper. He’s one of the best players in the hory of the French national team,” Lenglet was quoted stadiumastro. Com.
On all criticism, Lloris has maintained his game will do the talking. “I’m not going to settle my account in a press conference. The most important thing is what happens on the pitch. In the quarter-final of a World Cup, you don’t need outside motivation,” he would respond to the English press jibe. “They have their opinion and I have to respond on the pitch,” said Lloris in a conference transcribed L’Équipe.