Brad Friedel enjoying Spurs' 'healthy' competition

The current Spurs’ first-choice goalkeeper dismissed suggestions that new signing and French international stopper Hugo Lloris is unhappy at the club after making only one appearance for the North Londoners so far this season.

Friedel has been in good form and has received the backing of new manager Andre Villas-Boas who has denied that Lloris is ‘frustrated’ warming the bench.

The 41-year-old American spoke about the situation and his manager, claiming,

"It was always in his (Villas-Boas’) plans to play me against Chelsea and I knew from the point he benched me against Aston Villa.”

Friedel also blamed the media for trying to escalate the rivalry between the two goalkeepers.

“The media wanted to make out that it was this big fight between Hugo and myself and the manager, but there was never a big fight,” he insisted.

Lloris transferred in the summer from French Ligue 1 side Lyon for a fee of £12.3million, with many expecting that he would become Spurs’ first-choice goalkeeper.

But Friedel explained that his surprising fitness levels for a player of his age are what have prolonged his spell in the first-team.

“Tottenham have been looking for the last year and a half for a long-term number one goalkeeper. I don’t think they envisioned what my fitness levels would be at this age and I sort of surprised myself.”

Friedel has had an impressive career spanning 18 years in the top flight. He has made 471 Premier League appearances across the 15 years he spent between Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa and now at Tottenham Hotspur.

But he insists the competition between him and Hugo Lloris remains friendly and that the manager has the full backing of the team, regardless of whom he picks to start.

“It’s healthy, but there’s a competition. It’s friendly. It’s going to be a situation where Andre will choose a team that he feels will win the game on the day and that’s how it’ll be from now until the end of the season.”

image: © wonker