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The way that Cristian Romero tells it, there was a kind of rage inside him, an overwhelming desire for Tottenham to be better that sometimes overtook him. The defender could not help himself, he needed to make his views known, but when all of the pieces were put together from last season and into the summer, it was difficult to see that he was planning on staying at the club.
There was the repost of a social media message last September that claimed he was tired because Spurs had not flown him back on a private jet from Argentina duty. Note: reposts can be endorsements. There was the complaint in December that the club’s lack of spending meant they were falling behind Premier League rivals. “You have to realise that something is going wrong – hopefully they [the board] realise it,” he said.
There was the moment in March of this year when Romero thanked the Argentina medics for his return to fitness after injury while making no mention of the physios at Spurs. There was the interview in April when he said he would love to play in Spain’s La Liga. And he appeared to sign off on more than one level in mid-June as he paid tribute to the club’s outgoing manager, Ange Postecoglou – just after Thomas Frank had been confirmed as his successor.
“You paved the way despite the many obstacles that always existed and always will exist,” he wrote. Romero was being linked at the time with Atlético Madrid.
Romero’s story is the dictionary definition of a volte-face. That he has remained at Spurs might be attributed in part to how Atlético were never likely to find the money to make a compelling offer. But there are additional layers, deeper ones – primarily the fact that he ended up signing a four-year contract extension. Also, that he did so as the captain, having agreed to be the on-pitch leader of the Frank era after Son Heung-min’s departure for Los Angeles FC.
The excitement is bubbling at Spurs as they prepare to make their grand Champions League return; they kick off with a home tie against Villarreal on Tuesday night – the reward for that night in Bilbao, as the Europa League victory against Manchester United will always be known.
Frank’s European experience stretches no further than a handful of Europa League qualifying ties with Brøndby more than a decade ago. It has been quite the journey for him, taking in managing Brentford at Griffin Park in the Championship and it was touching to hear him talk of how he could not wait to hear the Champions League aria; to feel the vibes inside the stadium during the opening minutes of the game.
Frank is not the only important change at Spurs. There are new people in charge in the shape of Vivienne and Charles Lewis after the easing aside of the chairman Daniel Levy. There is a new chief executive in Vinai Venkatesham; a new non-executive chairman in Peter Charrington. But it is hard to see a clearer symbol of the fresh direction and hope than Romero. And the more he spoke at the pre-Villarreal media conference, the more it was possible to read into the reasons for his optimism.
“I did a lot of interviews which seemed like I was talking badly about people inside the club but in the end I’m a person who sometimes makes mistakes and that’s it,” Romero said.
“I always want the best for the club. Sometimes, things have been said that aren’t true as well but always everything I said is because I want there to be a structure of a club that can be at the top level, part of the big clubs.
“That’s why I was sometimes so angry before. But today I see a very organised club with a clear idea and a coach who is organising things. Everyone is seeing that in a short space of time we are with him. Absolutely everyone inside is looking in the same direction and that is the important thing.”
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Romero made the point that he had never said he wanted to leave, which is true. But there was plenty to grill him about, including his comments from December about the “people responsible” for the relative lack of investment in the squad.
“As I said before, it’s a bit of everything,” Romero said. “It’s about the group of players, the coaching staff, the people that work for us, the executives obviously. In the end, it depends on everyone that we pull in the same direction. I think that since Thomas arrived, they have started to take all those decisions to go in the same direction. And then when it’s like that, everything runs a lot more easily.
“We’ve had a great start to the season. There’s a lot we can still improve upon but we’ve created a lovely group to work with. The previous manager, Ange, brought this group together and now Thomas has arrived. He has brought in new players and they are fitting in nicely. When you are a family like this off the field, it’s much easier to achieve things on the field.”
Romero was asked for his thoughts on Levy’s departure. “I don’t know what’s happened but it’s not something I’ve had the chance to speak with him about personally,” the 27-year-old said. “He’s a person who’s been at the club for a good many years. We need to thank him because he’s the person who brought me here. Fortunately, we could crown his reign with a trophy, which would have made everyone happy, including him. I just desire the very best for him and it’s his decision …”
The last half-line was open to question but Romero was in no mood to brook many arguments. The past is the past. The future is fast taking shape.
