Cristian Romero leaves Tottenham after five seasons, having made 156 appearances for the club, scoring 13 times. He initially joined on loan from Atalanta in 2021 before signing permanently in a £42.5m deal. Romero became a key figure in Tottenham's defence, captaining the side last season as they narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League. He was also scheduled to return to pre-season with Spurs in the coming week after being given extra time off following the World Cup in North America.
Romero played a crucial role in Argentina's run to the World Cup final this summer. Atletico Madrid are set to take their transfer spending over £100m this summer should they complete the Romero deal. The Spanish club have already signed midfielders Kang-in Lee and Morten Hjulmand and left-back Alejandro Grimaldo. Head coach Diego Simeone is aiming to strengthen his squad after they finished fourth in La Liga last season, with Villarreal beating them to third place.
The news will be a blow to Spurs fans who are also set to lose Djed Spence to Inter Milan, who are in advanced talks to sign the England full-back in a £25.6m (30m euros) deal.