Cristian Romero was criticised for celebrating in the face of Manchester United defender Harry Maguire during Tottenham’s 3-2 defeat at Old Trafford – and now the Argentine ace has spoken out about his actions.
Romero, 23, has been excellent for Tottenham of late – proving to be a crucial part of Antonio Conte’s side chasing fourth place at this late stage in the season. Seven wins from nine has seen Spurs rise into fourth place.
Saturday’s 4-0 win over Aston Villa has seen Spurs go three points clear in fourth and while Arsenal have a game in hand – they suffered defeat at home to Brighton on Saturday before Tottenham’s excellent win at Villa.
At Old Trafford, Romero screamed in the out-of-form Maguire’s face after the latter scored an own goal – but it came back to bite Romero as Spurs suffered defeat. He has broken his silence on the incident, praising Maguire.
“I’ve got nothing but respect for Harry Maguire. He’s a top player who is having a great career. Generally I always respect my opponents so I think people who don’t know about the game get hold of a story.
“They run with it and talk about something that’s not really there. Maybe on that occasion I didn’t quite do the right thing but I had no bad intentions,” Romero told The Athletic over the weekend.
Romero on Maguire: Tottenham star and United ace at opposites
While £190,000-a-week (Spotrac) man Maguire is really struggling to prove why he cost £80million – Romero is looking like a snip at little over half of that price. With Romero still only 23, he is proving to be a real bargain.
Of course, he remains on loan but a permanent deal is expected to be sorted sooner rather than later. Football London say Spurs have the option – not obligation – to buy Romero for £42.5million, a deal they will surely do.
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