Cristian Romero may have played his last game for Tottenham Hotspur after the knee injury he suffered against Sunderland ended his season.
The news comes as another significant blow to Spurs in their attempt to avoid relegation from the Premier League and may prove to be a sad end to Romero’s career at the club.
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It is believed that Romero has suffered a partial tear of his medial cruciate ligament, which could rule him out for up to eight weeks – placing his involvement in the World Cup with Argentina in doubt.
Romero collided with Spurs keeper Antonin Kinsky in Sunday’s defeat by Sunderland – Owen Humphreys/PA
Romero left the Stadium of Light pitch in tears on Sunday, no doubt aware he may not play for Spurs again and could face a race to make the World Cup.
Telegraph Sport reported last month that Romero is one of several players who could leave Tottenham this summer as part of a planned overhaul of the squad – whether or not the club are relegated to the Championship.
The Argentine’s father claimed Romero has a “very high” release clause in the contract he signed last summer, although Tottenham’s bargaining power could be dictated by which division the club are in.
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Tottenham will be forced into a fire sale of some of their star players, of which captain Romero is the highest earner, if they go down, while they will need to sell players to help fund a squad overhaul if they remain in the Premier League.
Romero signed a new contract and was given the captaincy last summer, but he has endured a troubled season in which he missed six games through suspension and criticised the running of the club on social media.
Sources believe that Romero originally wanted to leave Tottenham at the end of last season, following the Europa League success. But the club refused to be bullied into a cut-price sale and valued him at more than £60m.
Romero joined Tottenham from Italian club Atalanta in 2021 on an initial season-long loan before the deal became permanent and cost the club £42.5m.