Tottenham are negotiating with Atlético Madrid over Cristian Romero’s potential transfer after firmly turning down an approach from Arsenal for the Argentina defender. The club are also expected to secure Micky van de Ven’s future with a new five-year contract.
Despite agreeing to a four-year extension at the beginning of last season, Romero has been open about wanting to leave Spurs. A move to Internazionale for approximately £35m had appeared likely, but Atlético have tracked the 27-year-old for some time and are believed to be his preferred choice. Diego Simeone’s team are reportedly willing to match Inter’s offer.
Spanish reports on Friday claimed that Romero has already settled personal terms. However, Atlético may need to create room in their squad before finalising the deal. Romero’s Argentina teammate Nahuel Molina is likely to move to Roma, while Aston Villa are pursuing Matteo Ruggeri.
Arsenal also expressed an interest in Romero while looking for cover for William Saliba, who faces a lengthy absence because of a back problem. Tottenham, having already recruited defenders Jan Paul van Hecke and Marcos Senesi this summer, made clear that they would not sell Romero to another Premier League side, particularly their north London rivals. Arsenal are also monitoring Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa.
Van de Ven was reportedly weighing up his future in north London earlier in the summer after Tottenham narrowly escaped relegation last season. However, new manager Roberto De Zerbi’s influence has convinced the Netherlands defender to remain at the club following discussions with his representatives.
Tottenham have invested more than £200m in six summer signings and continue to search for another attacking player. De Zerbi said last week that the club had completed “60% of our project in the transfer market”.
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