‘Tottenham given worrying Cristian Romero verdict as Atletico interest grows’
Tottenham have been issued a stark warning over defender Cristian Romero and his future at the club as Atletico Madrid intensify their interest.
Diego Simeone has made Romero one of his top targets to bolster his defensive ranks this summer and Spurs are expected to accept an offer from the Spanish side.
The 27-year-old has a £60million valuation placed on him by Spurs, who bought him for £42.5m from Atalanta in 2021.
Romero has since made 124 appearances for the club and started in their Europa League final win over Manchester United.
Frank issued warning as Romero seeks exit
Pundit Tony Cascarino, talking to talkSPORT, felt Spurs shouldn’t need to convince Romero to stay put in North London.
Cascarino believes the Argentine does not want to remain at the club: “Convincing players I am not a fan of that you shouldn’t be trying to convince a player to stay.
“You’ve got to want to be there and I’m not sure he wants to be at Spurs.
“I’ve always felt that he’s played his best football that he’s played his best football when he’s had to and when Atletico have made a clear indication they want him.”
The former Chelsea player then provided a message for new Spurs boss Thomas Frank: “That would be one of his issues [Frank], he’s got to look players in the eye and find out do you want to be at this football club.”
Frank should be prioritising defence over attack
Football Insider verdict
Spurs are standing firm in their valuation of Romero, and whilst Frank may not want to sell the defender, if the 27-year-old does not want to be at the club then he should be allowed to leave.
Frank already has plenty on his to do list and a £60m boost to his transfer funds would be a welcome increase.
Romero, and his partnership with Micky van de Ven, would be a loss that Frank would need to replace.
| Appearances | 100 |
| Goals | 7 |
| Assists | 2 |
Defensive additions have so far not been a key part of Frank’s summer spending despite Spurs conceding 65 goals in 38 Premier League games last season.
The Dane is targeting forward options with Mohammed Kudus a top target from West Ham.
The club could also activate Eberechi Eze’s release clause or make a shock swoop for Celtic’s Daizen Maeda.
Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey has also been linked with a move to North London.
Given his Brentford teams were known to be defensively sound and compact, Frank is currently trusting the Spurs squad he has inherited to become harder to beat.
Romero’s departure would force a defensive addition to be signed, something which Frank should be focusing more on.