Tottenham captain Cristian Romero has angered Spurs fans after it emerged that he will not attend their relegation decider against Everton this Sunday. The Argentine defender, who is out injured, has chosen to travel to Argentina to watch his former club Belgrano instead of cheering on his teammates at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Injury and absence
Romero suffered a knee injury in Tottenham's 1-0 loss at Sunderland last month, ruling him out for the remainder of the season. His absence has been significant for manager Roberto De Zerbi, but Spurs have managed to take eight points from the following five games, giving themselves a chance of avoiding relegation from the Premier League.
Relegation battle
Tottenham go into their final match against Everton with their fate in their own hands. Victory would secure 17th place and send West Ham down in 18th. The Hammers are two points worse off than their London rivals and host Leeds on Sunday.
It will be a tense and extremely important Sunday for Tottenham, but Romero will not be in the stands. Instead, he will be supporting his old club Belgrano as they play River Plate for the Argentine title this weekend. The Cordoba-based club posted a video on social media of Romero at their training ground on Friday.
Fan reaction
That decision has not gone down well on social media, with some fans describing his decision as "disgraceful." Many others have suggested this signals the end of his time at the club, regardless of whether they are relegated or not.
Romero has been strongly linked with a move to Atletico Madrid this summer, despite having three years left on a contract extension he signed last year. The 28-year-old joined Spurs in 2022 from Atalanta and has played 156 times for the club.
Manager's support
His importance to the squad was underlined by De Zerbi when confirming his season-ending injury last month. "Romero, I'm very sorry for him, for his injury. First of all, Romero loves Tottenham, people have to know he's suffering for this injury, suffering because he can't play for us again this season. He's a great captain for us," De Zerbi said.
"We have to be positive. We have Radu Dragusin and Kevin Danso, they are able to play, to play well, to give us the quality with the ball and to be strong in the defensive space so we can win. We want to win."
In his absence, Danso has partnered Micky van de Ven in central defence, but the duo could not stop Chelsea from winning 2-1 on Tuesday to set up the final-day relegation decider.
Both Spurs and West Ham face sides with little to play for, with Everton sitting 12th in the Premier League, while Leeds are 14th.
