Villas-Boas confident Lloris will be fit for France

Andre Villas-Boas expects Hugo Lloris to play for France in this week's World Cup play-off despite being told by medics not to play for Tottenham Hotspur on the eve of the international break. Lloris failed an impact test, which assesses reaction speed and memory, and missed the 1-0 Premier League defeat by Newcastle at White Hart Lane on Sunday, one week after he was knocked unconscious against Everton. Villas-Boas insists he was right to allow Lloris to continue playing at Goodison Park despite the goalkeeper being unfit for selection seven days later. "The medical department felt it was a bit too soon probably," said the Tottenham manager. "If the game was one day later he would've played and I expect Hugo to play for France this week," Villas-Boas added. "They’ve made different tests. In my opinion and obviously the club agree, it would be welcome if the medical department speak up about this situation. "The only comment I can make is that the medical department advised us not to use the player, we followed rules and that's it. "In the incident we did everything according to the book," the Portuguese insisted. Villas-Boas was heavily criticised for not immediately taking Lloris off against Everton, but he is adamant he made the right choice. The Spurs boss then declared Lloris fit for the Newcastle game when he spoke after the Europa League win over Sheriff Tiraspol. Villas-Boas added: "Clinically and medically all the signs were that the player was ready to play. "It was down to a test that they do, that they value a lot, called the Impact Test. "I had to stick to what they said. They decided the player wasn’t good enough." Brad Friedel took Lloris's place in goal against Newcastle and was beaten in the 13th minute by Loic Remy, who was played through on goal after Yoan Gouffran won the ball in midfield from Paulinho. The rest of the game saw Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul make 14 outstanding saves to deny Spurs. His first superb effort saw him flick away Roberto Soldado's header at full stretch. The Dutchman also pulled off a double save to keep out Gylfi Sigurdsson's free-kick and Younes Kaboul's follow-up, with Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa then clearing off the line. "This is the highlight of my career," Krul said. "It was nice to celebrate with the back four. These kind of games don't happen very often. It was great result." "The first save was the best, Soldado's header. The sun was low and it kick-started from there. "Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa put his life on the line to clear one and it shows the commitment, from the back five to the strikers. We have a great squad." Krul's heroics meant back-to-back wins for Newcastle after they beat Chelsea the previous weekend. "I think we have played better, against Sunderland we played well and lost," Krul said. "As long as we keep grafting, Remy up front and he keeps scoring. "If we keep a clean sheet we can win games. "We know the Premier League is unforgiving. Two home games to go and we can look ahead with great confidence." Newcastle manager Alan Pardew hailed his goalkeeper, adding: "It's one of the best goalkeeping performances I've witnessed. "His performance level needed to be high and it was. "We've not come under pressure often this season but we did in the second half and he answered everything. It was an unbelievable performance." Source: AFP