Romero has been at Tottenham for a few years now, moving from Italian side Atalanta in a deal worth around £42m in 2021. He’s completed 106 matches, scoring seven goals, and has been praised for his “incredible” technical quality by Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold.
As per FBref, Romero ranks among the top 8% of centre-backs across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for goals scored, the top 10% for pass completion, the top 12% for progressive passes, the top 19% for blocks and the top 16% for tackles and aerial battles won per 90.
He’s infamous for his aggressive, tough-tackling defensive game but Romero expertly adds a dimension from deep in the final third, drifting forward to latch onto set-piece deliveries, while he’s also blessed with a ball-playing game that allows Postecoglou’s fast-flowing style of football to operate to the nth degree.
Losing him would be cataclysmic, akin to that of Kane’s sale. The Argentina international, champion at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, has been pronounced the “best defender in the world” by his compatriot Lionel Messi and simply will not be replaced effectively, for players of his category are scanty.
Oh sure, there’s plenty of defensive talent stubbled across the face of the footballing landscape, but Romero’s skillset is a singular thing, and his captaincy of the Lilywhites across the past two Premier League matches – including the extraordinary 3-0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford – only underscores further the importance of keeping him down N17.
Micky van de Ven, athletic and imposing, earns plenty of plaudits for his flashy movements and loping strides, but he’s not on Romero’s level, not if you look a little closer. You can take a peek now, and see how Romero is far crisper, far more influential, far more involved and assertive.
We looked earlier at Kane’s brilliance at Tottenham, and though his sale was somewhat inevitable, for he had concluded the penultimate year of his contract and Spurs had finished eighth in the Premier League, closing the door on European competition, it still shouldn’t have happened.
Tottenham should not have fallen so heavily by the wayside after losing the Champions League final against Liverpool in 2019, a bitter defeat that knocked the project askew for several years onward.
