The Argentina centre-back has been linked with a transfer out of Tottenham Hotspur this summer and that would mean a new skipper at the club
Cristian Romero has been tipped to leave Tottenham this summer and that would leave Roberto De Zerbi with a decision to make over his new captain.
The Argentine, who will play in Sunday’s World Cup final against Spurs team-mate Pedro Porro, has been heavily linked with a transfer this summer despite only signing a new contract a year ago and becoming the club’s captain in the process. With De Zerbi bringing in his former Brighton centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke for £52million as well as the more left-sided Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi on a free transfer there is depth in the squad now to allow Romero to depart if all parties want it.
The key will be whether any of the big clubs often linked with Romero actually meet Tottenham’s valuation of a World Cup-winning centre-back with three years left on his contract. He could potentially have another winner’s medal around his neck after this weekend following a tournament in which the 28-year-old has put in some big performances.
If Romero does depart the north London club then De Zerbi will have to select a new captain and here are seven strong candidates for the role.
Micky van de Ven
This feels a bit like the Romero scenario but hopefully with a better outcome in that Tottenham offer Micky van de Ven a big new contract and the captain’s armband as well. The Dutchman had the role of skipper 18 times last season during Romero’s absence and also in all but the first of the matches in De Zerbi’s reign.
He is only 25 but the Dutchman is a player that the Spurs players look to, which made his red card against Crystal Palace all the more disappointing back in March.
Van de Ven has also been more available in the past 12 months. After the previous season’s injury problems, he played more minutes (3,943) than any other outfield Spurs player in the 25/26 campaign.
The Netherlands international now has strong competition from Senesi for his spot and that should push him to even better performances and he will have plenty of senior players to lean upon if he does become the captain.
James Maddison
James Maddison has been one of the club’s vice-captains in recent years to first Son Heung-min and then Cristian Romero and could be a contender to step up.
The issue might be that he has barely played any football in the past year due to that anterior cruciate ligament injury and De Zerbi might want his focus to be on his game and simply getting back to playing regular matches again rather than pushing himself too far as captain.
The 29-year-old is a popular player within the dressing room and De Zerbi wanted him on the bench for his presence even when he wasn’t ready yet to play towards the end of last season.
Much will depend on how much the Italian sees Maddison playing this season within his system and beyond once Xavi Simons returns.
Andy Robertson
Spurs knew they needed more leadership within the club so it’s no coincidence that many of the new arrivals are known for such an ability.
Andy Robertson is Scotland’s captain and won it all as a player at Liverpool so the defender knows what it takes to get over the line in club football.
The 32-year-old will be one of Tottenham’s senior players and will arrive with an air of authority thanks to what he’s achieved in his career so far, so if De Zerbi looks outside the squad from last season for his new skipper then the left-back would be a strong option.
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Pedro Porro
With Ben Davies an unlikely candidate purely based on game time, unless he became club captain rather than a matchday one, there’s another full-back who will be a senior player this season.
That’s World Cup finalist Porro who penned a new long-term deal with Spurs before starring at the tournament across the Atlantic and has been adding experience by the bucketload this summer.
The Spaniard has always been a go-to player for each head coach at Tottenham and De Zerbi looks to be no different. He’s not always considered for leadership positions but that might change as he gets older and more experienced.
Jan Paul van Hecke
Both the two incoming centre-backs are seen as players with the ability to lead so we could have also gone for Senesi here, but we’re going with Van Hecke simply because he knows De Zerbi’s football inside out from their time together on the south coast.
The Spurs boss said of the Dutchman back in the winter of 2023: “I think the most important quality of JP is the balance between the arrogance and the confidence in himself. He is not arrogant but his confidence in himself is high, high, high. It is his secret to keep this level because he has an incredible personality, shows incredible leadership and he is so young. It’s not common to see one young player with that level of personality.”
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler said of Van Hecke’s leadership last season: “I think every team needs leaders, someone with a voice in the dressing room. Jan Paul is a player who takes responsibility and naturally embraces that leadership role. He’s a player that others look up to, and that’s not just because of his performances on the pitch, but also the way he conducts himself off it.
“He has made incredible progress not just as a player, which is evident, but also as a person. He is increasingly aware of his role in the dressing room, speaking with many teammates, helping them, and pushing the team to give everything in every match. That’s what makes him special. He doesn’t just lead by example with his performances, but he actively engages with the squad to create a winning mentality.”
Conor Gallagher
We were tempted to go for Rodrigo Bentancur here but the Uruguayan has rarely if ever worn the captain’s armband despite being 29-years-old now, while Guglielmo Vicario is expected to leave the club this summer.
That’s why we’re including January arrival Conor Gallagher instead, because the 26-year-old was Mauricio Pochettino’s captain for much of the 2023/24 season when Reece James was out injured.
The problem for both Gallagher and Bentancur is how many games they will start next season, which knocks their chances of becoming the new leader.
De Zerbi has also tipped another midfielder Archie Gray as a future Tottenham captain but it seems too soon right now for the 20-year-old.
Sandro Tonali
We’re adding Sandro Tonali in here because quite frankly if you’re the club’s first £100million man then it means the team is going to be built around you.
The 26-year-old wore the captain’s armband once for Newcastle last season and used to wear it in his Italy international youth days. He is set to become a central figure for Tottenham but De Zerbi might just want him to focus on that and living up to that huge price tag.
At least De Zerbi has plenty of options now at his disposal to become captain should Romero leave north London this summer.
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