Fabrizio Romano has told GIVEMESPORT's Market Madness podcast that he expects Cristian Romero to stay at Tottenham this summer despite strong interest from Atletico Madrid.
The World Cup winning central defender has emerged as a top target for the La Liga giants this summer, as Diego Simeone looks to strengthen his squad, with the centre-back admitting that it would be a dream for him to move to Spain during his career.
Reports in Spain even suggest that Romero has already agreed personal terms about a move to the Wanda Metropolitano, but no transfer fee has been agreed between the clubs and it's now been revealed that it looks unlikely one will be.
Romano: Tottenham Want to Keep Romero
Frank sees him as crucial to the new project
Argentina star Romero, who has been described as "world-class" by teammate Micky Van de Ven, is currently the vice-captain in north London and has been a key member of the squad since signing from Juventus.
His importance has seen him described as "the best defender in the world" too, which explains why Atletico Madrid are so keen on bringing him to the Wanda Metropolitano. But according to Romano, who was speaking exclusively on the Market Madness podcast, Daniel Levy and Thomas Frank see him as key to the new project, which makes any deal very difficult to do.
"Look, Atletico love the player, so they would love to bring Cuti Romero one day to the club. Also, Simeone is a big fan, but my understanding is that with Tottenham in Champions League, Tottenham with a new project now, with Thomas Frank, I don't see Tottenham losing a leader like Cuti Romero this summer.
"So it's going to be very difficult to get the player in the summer transfer window.
"Daniel Levy wants to keep the player at the club from what I'm hearing. Also Thomas Frank sees Romero as a crucial part of this squad from a technical point of view, but also for leadership.
"So I think Atletico want to try. They always wanted to try, not only this year, also in the past, but at the moment, I think it's going to be quite complicated, especially with Tottenham being in the Champions League.
"If they lost the final by final in Bilbao, maybe it was going to be a different story. But now, being in the Champions League, I think it's going to be very tough."
Frank is looking to put his own stamp on the squad after replacing Ange Postecoglou as manager, but it makes sense that he wouldn't want to lose one of his better players.
It's also been reported that there is strong interest from Saudi Arabia in captain Heung-Min Son, and the club would be open to letting him leave, so Romero could find himself with the armband permanently.
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