Tottenham will need ‘warrior’ Cristian Romero at his best ahead of tricky run-in
Tottenham will need “warrior” Cristian Romero at his best if they are to finish in the Premier League’s top four and qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Spurs find themselves fifth in the league standings, seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa with two games in hand on their counterparts.
Furthermore, their run-in is tricky and includes trips to Chelsea and Liverpool and a visit from Manchester City before their final game of the season away against Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
Particularly following a spate of defensive injuries, Ange Postecoglou will be relying on Romero more than ever to provide solidity at the back across a difficult final run of fixtures.
Teammate Pape Matar Sarr hailed the centre-back’s mentality and attitude, saying to Sky Sports (1 May): “Romero is a really hard worker. I often say he is a warrior. He’s a winner and he absolutely hates to lose.
“In terms of his mentality, out on the training pitch and in matches, it is always the same. That’s just how he is and he is certainly one of the leaders in the dressing room with the energy, commitment and determination that he brings to the team.
“It is something that helps us get across the line sometimes. When you look at the match against Arsenal, it’s not easy to put in that performance like he did in the second half. But he’s like that.
“He’s a winner and I’m really happy for what he brings to this team.”
Cristian Romero is a warrior for Tottenham
Given the quality of Tottenham’s upcoming opponents in four of their last six Premier League games, Romero will certainly need to perform at his best if Spurs are to pick up the points required to leapfrog Aston Villa and qualify for next season’s Champions League via a top-four finish.
Romero’s goal threat – he has five league strikes to his name so far – is eye-catching, but it is his less glamorous qualities that Spurs will rely on most, particularly with both the squad’s natural left-backs – Destiny Udogie and Ben Davies – out injured, unsettling the back four at a crucial time.
According to FBref, the central defender has averaged 85.04 passes and 6.08 progressive passes per 90 in the Premier League this season, as well as a progressive passing distance of 528.27 yards per game in the competition.
The 26-year-old is crucial to how Spurs build attacks from deep – but his passing accuracy remains a healthy 91.9 per cent despite the high volume and ambitious nature of many of his passes.
When watching Romero play, however, there is one quality that stands out above even his goalscoring and progressive passing – the Argentine seems to simply love a crunching challenge. That is reflected in his numbers, as he averages 2.19 tackles per 90 in the Premier League.
If Romero can continue to perform at the high level he has so far, it will be a significant boost to Spurs’ chances of Champions League qualification.
In other Tottenham news, Sergio Reguilon wants to “get out” of Spurs despite a new transfer update emerging at Brentford.
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