As Tottenham Hotspur suffered another defeat this weekend, it has become clear that Spurs need to find a Cristian Romero replacement for next season.
Saturday's 2-0 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford left Spurs in 15th position, just six points above West Ham United in the Premier League relegation zone.
Red Devils and England legend Wayne Rooney says Tottenham are in a relegation battle this term, with two big matches against Newcastle United and Arsenal coming at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this week.
Thomas Frank knows he needs results, but he will be without his captain Romero for both games.
Romero is a Liability Tottenham Don't Need
While there is no doubting Romero's quality when he is at the top of his game, Tottenham simply cannot afford to rely on him when they are struggling so much.
His red card against United at the weekend was his second of the season - and his sixth since he joined Spurs in 2021 - and means he will now miss their next four games.
In fact, the Argentina international won't be available for selection again until mid-March, when the north London club face Liverpool with Romero's other red card coming in the reverse fixture against Arne Slot's side.
In a further damning statistic, the 27-year-old actually should have been dismissed on two more occasions - both against Brentford - according to the Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel.
The latest red also followed hot on the heels of more public criticism of the Tottenham board in a scathing Instagram post following the draw with Manchester City previously.
Tottenham Make Bid for Ideal Romero Replacement
It was reported on deadline day that Spurs had made an offer worth £30m to sign Barcelona centre-back Ronald Araujo.
While a move obviously failed to materialise, it is clear that Tottenham are beginning to look at how they can strengthen their central defence after Romero, with a reliable Argentine journalist reporting last week that he will leave the club at the end of the season.
In addition, there will be further worries over the future of Micky van de Ven, who is attracting interest from elite clubs such as Liverpool ahead of the summer, as per GIVEMESPORT senior correspondent Ben Jacobs.
Araujo meanwhile, has been described as 'one of the best defenders in the world' by Barca legend Carles Puyol and praised for his 'cheat code' recovery pace, although his game time has been limited this season because of issues off the pitch as well as injury problems.
Nevertheless, you don't make 200 appearances for a club the size of Barcelona unless you are a good player.