Cristian Romero faces an uncertain future at Tottenham Hotspur, but Arsenal have been urged not to sign the defender
Cristian Romero of Tottenham Hotspur after his sides 3-0 defeat during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Nottingham Forest at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Cristian Romero has been thinly linked with a move to Arsenal this summer(Image: Getty)
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Lee Dixon has urged Arsenal to steer clear of signing Cristian Romero from Tottenham Hotspur. The 28-year-old defender has recently been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium as Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his backline, but a deal could be difficult to complete.
According to The Athletic, the Gunners are admirers of Romero, whose contract expires in June 2029. The report claims that, despite interest from across north London, the Lilywhites would be unwilling to do business with a fierce rival.
Even if Spurs were to give Arsenal the green light, Dixon described the Argentina international as a 'liability'. Speaking to BestBettingSites on behalf of football.london, the former Gunners defender said: "Well, I wouldn't go near Romero with a barge pole, for lots of reasons.
"I just don't think he'd be good in this side. Sometimes managers get this idea that they can tame a player or sort them out, but I've seen enough in him as an individual to know he can't even tame himself at times."
Dixon continued: "He's a liability. As good as he can be, he'd be a liability, so I wouldn't go near him. Centre-back is probably one of those positions where you do need one more, because, as well as Christhian Mosquera, Riccardo Calafiori or Piero Hincapié can play there."
On who Andrea Berta should sign instead, the Arsenal legend added: "I think we need that next tier. I like Ezri Konsa; I think he's a really good player. But yeah, I wouldn't go near Romero."
football.london understands that Inter Milan are interested in signing Romero. It's said that, despite signing John Stones following the expiry of his contract with Manchester City, the Italian giants are weighing up a move for the Argentine.
Although Roberto De Zerbi considers the centre-back as one of the best in his position, he told football.london during the pre-season tour of Australia that he will respect Romero's wishes to leave this summer. The Tottenham boss said: "At the beginning of my time, in April, I had, I don't know, one million individual meetings!"
Cristian Romero
Cristian Romero has been linked with a move away from Tottenham Hotspur(Image: Image Photo Agency/Getty Images)
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"And [the players] told me what was their idea. I said: 'Yes, help me to stay up, and then I help you to leave'. If you don't help me to stay up, you stay underwater with me! But Romero with me was unbelievable. Top.
"In his behaviour, his respect, he suffered when he did not play the last game. It is not true that he wanted to leave for Argentina to prepare for their World Cup. It's not true.
"After the semi-final [against England] we text a message, but I never called him to convince him to stay. I respected what he told me. Like for Vicario, like for every player."
De Zerbi added: "Romero as a player is one of the best centre-backs in the world, but at the end I said I want to respect the will of the players."
As it stands, it remains to be seen whether or not Tottenham will cash in before the transfer window slams shut at the start of September...