Olivier Giroud has revealed he believes Hugo Lloris is a better goalkeeper than Thibaut Courtois ahead of France’s World Cup semi-final meeting with Belgium.
Lloris and Courtois are set to go head-to-head in St Petersburg on Tuesday night with a place in Sunday’s final up for grabs.
A total of nine Tottenham players could feature in the semi-finals, with England scheduled to take on Croatia in Luzhniki on Wednesday evening.
Belgium and France have been two of the most impressive teams at the tournament so far, and a lot of that has been down to the goalkeepers.
Lloris made a stunning save in France’s quarter-final victory over Uruguay, while Courtois was in top form during Belgium’s win against Brazil.
And Giroud, who is expected to lead the line for France again on Tuesday, has been comparing his club-mate Courtois and his international teammate Lloris.
“Thibaut has an impressive wingspan. It’s hard to beat him on the sides. He can stop balls in any area,” Giroud said in a press conference, according to Football365.
“I have scored a few goals against him in training with Chelsea and I hope I can do it on Tuesday. They’re both great keepers.
“And they both deserve to be elected as best keeper of the tournament, even if I have a preference for Hugo. The best is Hugo. Sorry Thibaut.”
Giroud is admired by both Arsenal and Chelsea fans, so in some ways it must be difficult for him to pick Lloris ahead of Courtois.
