Ready for some transfer slop? Oh fam, you know I’ve got you. Sky Sports understands that Atletico Madrid are ready to make an approach to sign Cuti Romero this summer, and that they could offer as much as £39m for him!
Wow! That’s a lot of £! Except it really isn’t for one of the best central defenders in the Premier League.
There’s a lot of hedging in this short article, which comes from Lyall Thomas via the Sky Sports transfer tracker. First, there’s the suggestion that Atletico WILL approach Tottenham but haven’t yet. Then there’s the price, which feels pretty risible for a player who has won the World Cup. Sky says Spurs value Romero “in excess of £49m” (a weirdly specific number) and likely that valuation is even higher.
Now, look — there is an argument to be made that now is the time to cash in on Romero for the right price and use those funds to improve the squad elsewhere. Kevin Danso is looking like he could be a decent player alongside Micky van de Ven so the drop-off might not be as steep as it was at the beginning of this past season. We also know Atletico has long been a fan of Cuti, and that Romero, answering a leading question from an Argentine journalist, said he’d love to play in La Liga someday.
But if that happens it won’t be for cheap and it won’t be unless Cuti pushes for it to happen. And if you read the tea leaves in the media, it’s starting to sound like Ange Postecoglou and Cuti Romero might be a package deal — if Ange stays, Cuti stays, and vice versa.
The summer just started, and while I doubt this is something we need to worry about in the short term I also suspect this could be a long annoying summer of Romero Out rumors, or at least until we get some further clarity. Brace yourselves.