Spurs eyeing up £26m "monster" who could be their next Romero

The January transfer window officially slammed shut last Thursday and Tottenham Hotspur snapped up two new additions to their first-team squad.

Central defender Radu Dragusin was brought in on a permanent deal from Italian side Genoa to compete with the likes of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.

Ange Postecoglou and Daniel Levy also moved to sign Germany international Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig, and the former Chelsea man has enjoyed a strong start to his career in North London.

23/24 Premier League

Timo Werner (via Sofascore)

Appearances

Three

Goals

Zero

Big chances missed

One

Assists

Two

Big chances created

One

The end of the transfer window did not stop the club from doing more business, though, as 18-year-old Lucas Bergvall was snapped up for a fee of £8.5m earlier this month, and he will link up with his new team at the end of the season.

Latest Spurs transfer news
Tottenham may not be able to make more signings to bolster their squad for the second half of the current campaign but, like they did with the Swedish teenager, they can put work in ahead of the summer transfer window.

According to Corriere di Bologna, via Tutto Bologna Web, Spurs are one of many sides ‘launching’ their interest in Serie A centre-back Riccardo Calafiori as Postecoglou eyes up another new enforcer.

The report claims that Juventus, Napoli, AC Milan, and the Lilywhites are all keeping tabs on the impressive defender, who has caught the eye with his performances in Italy so far this season.

It also states that a fee of €30m (£26m) has been touted for the 21-year-old colossus. However, it remains to be seen whether or not any of the interested parties would be willing to pay it.

There is also the possibility that Bologna’s valuation of the towering ace could fluctuate based on his form between now and the end of the campaign, as a drastic dip could lower his market value or it could skyrocket with a string of sublime displays.

Spurs already have van de Ven, Romero, and Dragusin on their books as recognised, natural, centre-backs, which means that they have two right-sided options and one, van de Ven, for the left, although Ben Davies can also cover in that position.

Signing Calafiori, who is left-footed, would leave Postecoglou with exceptional competition for places as he would have two first-team quality options in each role, for the right and the left of the centre-back pairing, and ensure that complacency does not creep in.

Whilst, as a left-sided titan, the £26m-rated gem could play alongside him, Spurs could land their next Romero in a swoop for the Bologna star as both players are progressive passers who can also read the game effectively to win possession back for their respective sides.

Cristian Romero’s impressive performances for Spurs
The World Cup winner has been a terrific performer for Tottenham in recent seasons with his full-blooded, committed, displays at the heart of the defence.

Romero gives his all on the pitch and that is sometimes too much when it boils over, as it did when he gave away a penalty and picked up a red card for a poor challenge against Chelsea in the Premier League earlier this season.

Take those occasional moments of rash play out of the equation, though, and the 25-year-old colossus is vital to Spurs with his play in and out of possession.

Over the last 365 days, Romero ranks within the top 14% of centre-backs in the Men’s Big Five Leagues and European competitions for progressive passes (4.86), and the top 11% for shot-creating actions (1.23) per 90 respectively.

This shows that the Argentina international is a forward-thinking defender who constantly looks to progress the play for his team to build attacks, rather than being a regressive centre-back who plays safe passes and stagnates build-up play.

Along with his superb use of the ball, the Tottenham star also excels as an out-and-out defender who can read the game and dominate in physical battles.

Romero ranks within the top 13% of his positional peers in the aforementioned competitions over the last 365 days for interceptions (1.56), and the top 5% for tackles (2.40) per 90 respectively.

He has also won 69% of his duels across 18 appearances in the Premier League so far this season for Spurs, which shows that opposition players rarely get the better of him.

Why Calafiori could be Romero 2.0
Postecoglou could land a left-footed version of Romero by securing a deal to sign Calafiori ahead of the likes of Napoli, Juventus, and Milan in the summer.

FBref list the Argentine enforcer as one of the most similar defenders to the Bologna star based on their respective statistics, and it is easy to see why when you look at the 21-year-old ace’s form this season.

Calafiori, whose recent progression has been described as “insane” by analyst Ben Mattinson, is a progressive passer who does not shy away from his defensive responsibilities.

The Italian titan currently ranks within the top 6% of Serie A centre-backs for shot-creating actions (1.68), and the top 29% for progressive passes (3.53) per 90 respectively. He also ranks in the top 5% for successful take-ons (0.46) per 90 this season.

These statistics suggest that the Spurs target, who has played 19 league matches this term, is similar to Romero in how he excels at building attacks that lead to shots at the opposition’s goal.

23/24 Serie A

Riccardo Calafiori (via Sofascore)

Appearances

19

Tackles per game

1.4

Interceptions per game

1.8

Ball recoveries per game

6.9

Duel success rate

61%

As you can see in the table above, Calafiori has dominated attackers in physical contests and made made multiple defensive interventions to win the ball back for his team each game.

In fact, he ranks within the top 6% of Serie A centre-backs for interceptions (1.97) per 90, which illustrates his ability to read the game to step in and cut out opposition attacks.

Calafiori, who was described as a “monster” in the air by the aforementioned Mattinson, has also won 73% of his aerial duels in the league this season.

Therefore, the Bologna tank could be the left-footed Romero for Spurs if they secure his services in the summer due to his qualities in and out of possession.