Spurs ready to make defender highest paid player at the club | OneFootball

If his absence wasn't so mind blowingly obvious, for the wrong reasons, every game he misses - you may be given for briefly forgetting that Cristian Romero is currently a Tottenham Hotspur player - given how long it has been since we saw him on the pitch.

Around a quarter of an hour or so against Chelsea in December is the only time we have seen the Argentine defender since Spurs played Ipswich Town on the 10th November. He picked up an injury a few days later with the national team.

Spurs prepared to make defender highest paid player at the club

Nevertheless, according to outlet TBR Football, Spurs are prepared to make Romero the highest paid player at the club, in an attempt to keep him at the club. There have been links from elsewhere in the past, notably Real Madrid.

They further stated that last year, Spurs were looking to open talks with Romero regarding a new contract, and that there was communication between the player's camp and the club themselves.

However, they do go on to make the point that the defender's open criticism of the club hierarchy in an interview at the end of 2024 could prove to be a stumbling block.

Later on in the report, TBR suggest that some inside the club believe winning the Europa League is their last chance when it comes to being able to keep Romero at Spurs, as it would mean Champions League football next season.

Finally, they state that Spurs are looking at potential replacements for the player, in the form of; Marc Guehi, Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah, Dean Hujisen, Antonio Silva, and Tomas Araujo.

While there is no doubt that Romero is a very good player, this does feel like quite a surprise. As touched on at the start, he has barely played. This is not a new thing either. In 21/22, he played 22 games, starting 21. In 22/23, he played 27 games, starting 26. In 23/24, he played and started 33 games. So far this season, he has played and started 12 games.

All of the above numbers are league only. So, in four seasons, he has played over 30 games once (he can play a maximum of 26 games this season). Availability is the best ability. It feels like a big gamble to give a player who can not guarantee playing even 30+ league games a season, as good as he may be when he is available.