Tottenham star Cristian Romero suffered a fresh injury setback vs Chelsea
Tottenham Hotspur defender Cristian Romero was a surprise starter against Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
Barely anyone expected the 2022 World Cup winner to be fit for Sunday’s London derby – nor his fellow centre-back partner Micky van de Ven – although both were in the starting XI for the visit of Chelsea. Ange Postecoglou had stated the 26-year-old was yet to join training in his pre-match press conference, so Spurs fans would have been astonished watching his inclusion in the first XI,
Unfortunately, Cristian Romero lasted only 15 minutes before pulling up and signalling to the bench. He was replaced by Radu Dragusin, and the quickly unravelled for Tottenham after the Argentinean was forced off. Chelsea took advantage of Romero’s departure almost immediately, halving the deficit to 2-1 through Jadon Sancho.
-> Postecoglou rallies Tottenham troops, calls ‘to overcome’ challenges after Chelsea collapse
Ange Postecoglou was asked for an injury update on his defensive lynchpin’s during the post-match press conference. The Spurs boss stated. (h/t BBC Sport)
“He had a knock on his toe and today was his quad so it’s quite different. With Romero going down, who we thought would play 90 comfortably, made it a bit more challenging.”
Spurs’ season has been ravaged by injury problems to key performers. Entering Sunday’s encounter with Chelsea, Postecoglou had only one fully fit centre-back Radu Dragusin available.
Romero had been out injured since November’s international break until he returned on Sunday before sustaining a different problem than the previous one. Having suffered a toe problem earlier, the Argentinean international went off with what Big Ange confirmed was a quad issue.
The Cordoba-born talent hasn’t had the greatest of seasons in a Tottenham shirt and has come under a fair bit of criticism for some of the mistakes he has made this term. His decision-making on and off the ball has been bad, which has been exploited by the opposition.
Whether he was fully fit or not, the idea of starting both Romero and Micky van de Ven against Enzo Maresca’s side backfired. This potentially leaves Tottenham without their first-choice defenders in the coming games.
More Tottenham Hotspur News:
- Tottenham in three-way transfer battle as Conte plans to sign Spurs target this summer
- Not Toney – Tottenham put off by €50m asking price for striker whose contract expires in less than 12 months
- Tottenham now in position to hijack Chelsea deal for Serie A ace
The South American’s latest injury is a big blow for the North London side, one Big Ange will pray is only a minor issue. The Hotspur Way faithful will be hoping for positive news on the injury front of Romero in the coming days.
