“After two years here I can only say good things about Hugo Lloris,” said Mauricio Pochettino after Tottenham’s 0-0 draw with Bayer Leverkusen. “He is a fantastic goalkeeper and one of the best in the world. He was brilliant again. I don’t change my opinion about him. He is top quality, he is one of the best. He is in the best moment in his career.”

Pochettino’s right, too. This was not simply a manager puffing out his chest over his own player, but an accurate assessment of his player. Ranking the world’s best goalkeepers is as difficult and ultimately meaningless as any other position, but there is no doubt that Tottenham have a gem. A club that hasn’t finished in the top two of its domestic league since 1963 really does have one of the best players in his position in the world.

It is a difficult lot being a goalkeeper. Your errors are scrutinised far more than any other position, and only your most flamboyant moments of excellence are remembered or even noticed. Paolo Maldini’s line about the brilliance lying not in making the tackle but never needing to make the tackle, doesn’t quite hold true with saves, but the general point holds.

Against Leverkusen, Lloris produced one of those flamboyant moments. Javier Hernandez clearly should have finished his second-half chance, but Lloris’ ability (and desire) to scramble back across his goal and stop the ball on the line with a strong hand showed incredible reflexes. Hernandez was in disbelief at the save.

Yet that is typical of Lloris’ form. Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen are rightly praised for Tottenham’s defensive record, but both take their lead from the unflustered Frenchman behind them. It isn’t an infallible measure of ability, but of the 20 Premier League goalkeepers to play in more than three games this season, Lloris has by far the highest save percentage (84.2%). The gap to second place is bigger than that between second and 11th on the list.

One thing that jumps out to an amateur observer is how good he is at staying low before a shot comes. It doesn’t stop him pushing off his feet to save a high shot, but does give him the balance to make the low diving stops that require a complete extension of his frame. Combine that with positional excellence and technically difficult saves are made to look easy.

So much of what a goalkeeper does flies under the radar of standard punditry and analysis, simply because it is such a specialised position. The goalkeepers-turned-pundits that do spring to mind (Peter Schmeichel, David James and David Icke) are rarely pressed for detailed analysis, except on the royal family being lizards.

Never was that more true in the case of Lloris. He does not play for Manchester United, Barcelona or Bayern Munich, so misses out on reputation enhancement through ubiquity. He shuns the chest-beating passion of Joe Hart – or is that old Joe Hart? – and doesn’t come to the halfway line like Manuel Neuer. Lloris is, and this should be taken as a compliment, indistinct. He is Tottenham captain, but a leader through example rather than raised voice or barked orders.

In that sense, perhaps Lloris is a reflection of his manager. There are no histrionics, no discernible hyperbolic emotions, both almost sheepish in front of a camera. Don’t let shyness be mistaken for meekness. Like Pochettino, Lloris has a steely determination to be the best at what he does and win trophies. It’s the quiet ones you have to watch.

Daniel Storey