Cuti Romero: ‘I’ve wanted to play at Atlético Madrid for a long time’

Cristian Romero on Saturday completed his move to Atlético de Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur, after a club-to-club agreement was reached on Wednesday.

Romero on Friday flew to Madrid, underwent his medical and signed his new contract to 2031. The 28-year-old took training for the first time on Saturday, and he could be in the squad Wednesday when Atlético host Malága to begin its 2026/27 campaign. Romero had drawn interest from Inter Milan, FC Barcelona and even Spurs’ city rivals Arsenal, once it became clear that the Argentina international would be leaving Tottenham; he said goodbye to Spurs fans in a video posted to social media on Friday.

Sporting director Mateu Alemany has closed this deal for an initial fee of €33 million, according to Marca. The Madrid daily reports that Spurs can receive another €7 million in bonuses. Spurs will retain a 15 percent sell-on clause, per reports in England. The fee is in line with each of the other deals Alemany has concluded this summer, the exception being Alejandro Grimaldo’s €20 million move from Bayer Leverkusen.

Diego Simeone had long courted Romero, a 58-time Argentina international who led Spurs to a Europa League crown in 2025. Atleti attempted to sign him last year, but Spurs slapped an €80 million price tag on Romero and eventually renewed his contract to 2029 while naming him club captain. One summer later, after a turbulent campaign that saw Romero rip club management multiple times, Spurs are moving on — and Simeone is getting his top defensive target at last.

Following a 156-game Spurs career, Romero is expected to be the anchor of a refurbished defense at the Metropolitano. He can line up in a trio alongside Dávid Hancko and Marc Pubill to form a 3-5-2 where Grimaldo and Marcos Llorente would play as wing-backs. He can play in a four-man defense alongside either Hancko or Pubill; the other could slide over to full-back.

“I’ve wanted to be here for a long time. I can’t wait to play here in front of the fans,” Romero told club media in his first official interview. “When I played against Atleti in the Champions League, the people, the fans and the way they support the team… It was a little bit of everything that led me to make the decision to come here.”

A commanding, decisive, aerially-dominant, old-school center-back with great anticipation, physical strength and ball-playing ability, Romero battled numerous injuries over his Spurs stint and missed 71 games over the past five seasons. However, when fit and available, the 28-year-old is among the world’s top central defenders. Spurs’ consecutive 17th-place finishes in the Premier League don’t look good on Romero’s CV — especially as he was club captain in 2025/26. But his role in helping Argentina to successive FIFA World Cup finals (with a victory in 2022) showcased his talent on a global stage.

There is no separating Romero’s discounted price tag from his injury and disciplinary records: without them, he would not be accessible to Atlético. As I’ve written already, this signing comes with risk and strings attached. It simply comes with the territory, given the aggression and the combativeness inherent to his playing style. But realistically, Romero is the best and most accomplished central defender that Atleti could have signed in this price range. The payoff could be transformative if he is healthy, focused and not frequently suspended for card accumulation.