Tottenham boost as Atletico Madrid abandon their pursuit of Cristian Romero
Tottenham Hotspur defender Cristian Romero has been flirting with a move to Spain since before the end of last season, publicly stating in an interview in March that he wished to play in La Liga.
The 2022 World Cup winner’s strongest suitors have been Atletico Madrid since the turn of the year. The La Liga side’s coach, Diego Simeone, recently called the Tottenham defender a “great player”, adding further fuel to the speculation.
Cristian Romero put in a Man of the Match display in the Europa League final victory over Manchester United, which ensured the Lilywhites’ entry into next season’s Champions League. Spurs are eager to hold on to the player despite his desire of taking up a new challenge elsewhere. To scare off his potential suitors, Daniel Levy has set a £70million asking price for his star defender and is not willing to budge on his valuation of the 27-year-old.

Atletico Madrid have cooled their interest in the Tottenham star
Now, according to a report from Spanish outlet AS, Tottenham have rejected Atletico Madrid’s approach for Romero and warned them their offer won’t be considered. Diego Simeone’s club were willing to reach €55m, but Spurs quickly rebuffed their advances and made it clear they won’t enter into negotiations for the Argentina international.
This has forced Los Colchoneros to look for other options to strengthen their backline for the 2025/26 season and they have identified Nottingham Forest’s Murillo, Feyenoord’s David Hancko, Bayer Leverkusen’s Piero Hincapie and Bologna’s Jhon Lucumi.
The aforementioned report adds Atletico are considering making a move for Forest defender Murillo, who has consistently impressed in the Premier League since joining them from Corinthians in August 2023.

Tottenham win the battle to keep Cristian Romero
The suggestions that Atletico have cooled their interest in Romero and are planning to go a different route to bolster their defensive unit means Tottenham have won the tug of war. Daniel Levy holding firm on the South American’s £70million valuation has worked out very well, scaring off the Spanish side from entering into concrete negotiations.
More Tottenham Hotspur News:
- Tottenham digging their heels to retain Europa League hero as Spanish giants circle
- “I love Tottenham”- Spurs ace opens up as Daniel Levy readies lucrative financial offer amidst summer transfer interest
- Daniel Levy is prepared to make Tottenham star best-paid player amid La Liga interest
The Spurs chairman has once again proved his reputation as a tough negotiator, which is likely to have not gone down well with those in charge of negotiations at the Wanda Metropolitano. It remains to be seen what transpires with Romero’s future, who has two years left on his deal at White Hart Lane.
The Argentinean managed to finish the last campaign strongly, and will certainly be one of the first names on Thomas Frank’s teamsheet.