Three players who could become new Tottenham captain as talks take place for Cristian Romero exit

Cristian Romero looks certain to leave Tottenham Hotspur in the summer transfer window.

The 28-year-old is currently away from north London representing Argentina at the World Cup, where he will face England in the semi-finals on Wednesday.

Romero was named Spurs skipper 12 months ago following the departure of Son Heung-min to LAFC in MLS.

However, Romero has been consistently linked with a move away from Spurs, and earned the ire of supporters at the end of last

An injured Romero was initially going to stay in Argentina to watch his boyhood club Belgrano instead of watching Spurs' crucial final game of last season at home to Everton.

Now, it looks as though a decision has been made, and Tottenham News has looked at three candidates to replace him as captain.

James Maddison

Tottenham News has previously reported on Romero's chances of departing Tottenham this summer.

The signings of Jan Paul van Hecke and Marcos Senesi have only further exacerbated suggestions he could leave.

Now, Fabrizio Romano has reported that Romero will depart this summer, and that talks have been held with Serie A giants Inter over a move.

Romano added that LaLiga powerhouses Barcelona are also interested in Romero.

One primary candidate to replace him has to be attacking midfielder James Maddison, who missed most of last campaign with an ACL injury.

Maddison, 29, has the experience now and is always prepared to front up when times are hard.

Morever, Maddison was named as one of the vice-captains by former boss Thomas Frank when he picked his leadership team last season.

Maddison is someone who always wants to drive standards, so he would make an obvious choice to replace Romero.

Micky van de Ven

Like Maddison, Netherlands centre-back Micky van de Ven was part of the leadership group last season.

Ben Davies and Guglielmo Vicario were also part of that group, but the former is unlikely to be a regular starter and the latter could still be sold this summer.

Van de Ven himself has been touted with a move elsewhere, but it is difficult to image both he and Romero will be allowed to leave in the same window.

The 25-year-old could really mature if he were given the responsibility of taking the armband on a full-time basis.

With plenty of experienced heads around him to help, it could be a shrewd move by De Zerbi to help Van de Ven take his game to the next level.

Andy Robertson

Andrew Robertson may have only just arrived at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium from Liverpool.

But the 32-year-old was signed exactly for this sort of scenario.

There is a feeling that Spurs had a bit of an experience void last term, but the arrival of Robertson certainly helps with that.

A two-time Premier League winner and a Champions League victor with Liverpool, Robertson knows what it takes to be successul.

Moreover, Robertson has captained Scotland since 2018, so knows what it is like to do the role.