The deal for Spurs to sign Atalanta centre-back Cristian Romero has finally been agreed, with the club set to pay a fee in the region of €50 million with an additional €5 million in bonuses.
Sporting Director Fabio Paratici has been working day and night to secure the Argentine defender’s signature – after he won Serie A Defender of the Year last season before helping his nation to their first Copa America title since 1993.
Cristian Romero to Tottenham, here we go! Atalanta have accepted Spurs official bid for €50m + €5m add ons. Barça have never been in the race. ⚪️🚨 #THFC
Atalanta are closing on Merih Demiral from Juventus on loan with buy option [around €30m total]. Paperworks time soon. pic.twitter.com/5P3efBotV6
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 3, 2021
Romero, 23, topped the defensive charts for a number of different statistics, including an average of a combined 5.6 tackles + interceptions per 90 minutes in the Italian top flight last season.
With Toby Alderweireld being sold to Qatari club Al-Duhail, a new central defender was the top priority for the club and Romero would become the third signing of the Summer, following on from Bryan Gil and Pierluigi Gollini.
Cristian Romero – The Answer 🔜
— Hotspur Lane (@HotspurLane) August 3, 2021
His aggressiveness was matched by high levels of concentration, confidence and composure as most Serie A attackers really struggled to get past him – including Inter Milan’s Romelu Lukaku who is seen in a semi-viral highlight clip being stopped by Romero, who made a superb recovery tackle similar to the infamous Ledley King challenge on Chelsea’s Arjen Robben.
It is expected that the defender will arrive in London at some point over the next 48 hours to complete his move after pushing hard for it due to his desire to play for Spurs.
Cristian Romero will fly to England to join Tottenham within the next 48 hours, once paperworks will be signed. Done deal after Atalanta accepted €55m bid 🇦🇷🛫 #THFC
Romero pushed a lot as he only wanted Tottenham. Barça, never in the race. Caleta-Car for Spurs, fake news. 🔴
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 3, 2021
Upon confirmation of the deal, Paratici will then work on selling Davinson Sanchez, Moussa Sissoko and Serge Aurier, while Ben Davies now appears to be on the transfer list too – all but confirming Nuno’s intention to operate with a four-man defence.
Takehiro Tomiyasu is one player who could also sign in the next week or so, with Spurs nearing an agreement, while the club are still interested in Nikola Milenkovic and Jannik Vestergaard.
Elsewhere, Paratici is also looking at the likes of Mikkel Damsgaard, Dusan Vlahovic and potentially James Maddison – all while Harry Kane continues to be absent from the club as he looks to force through a transfer to Manchester City.