It seems as though Tottenham have only just got Cristiano Romero back from suspension and are already being forced to consider the possibility of being without him once again after their win over Newcastle United.
Many fans at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium were left with their heads in their hands on 6 November when Romero was sent off during the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea for a reckless tackle on international teammate Enzo Fernandez.
He was subsequently suspended for three matches, during which time Tottenham did not win a single game, underlining the importance of the World Cup winner to the team.
The central defender returned to action in the 2-1 defeat to West Ham United on Thursday 7 December and then started in Spurs’ first win since October, a 4-1 victory over Newcastle on Sunday 10 December.
Those are the only two games in which Romero has returned, but the 25-year-old is already at risk of missing another game for the club over the festive period, which would leave Tottenham with the duo of Emerson Royal and Ben Davies again.
Indeed, in the game against Eddie Howe’s team, he received his fourth yellow card of the season for another reckless tackle, this time on Callum Wilson, who was perhaps lucky not to see red.
According to the official Premier League website (11 December), the rules state that “any player who receives five cards in his team’s first 19 Premier League matches will serve a one-match ban in the same competition”.
With three games to go before this cut-off point, there is a serious possibility that Romero could receive a fifth yellow card in that time, which would force him to miss the Everton, Brighton or Bournemouth encounter.
As he showed against Newcastle and West Ham, Spurs cannot afford to be without Romero again.
Against the Magpies, the former Serie A defender made five defences and one clearance, winning seven of 11 duels on the ground and 100 percent in aerial duels (three out of three). In addition, he completed 88 percent of his passes, played two accurate long balls forward and was successful in one dribbling attempt (Sofascore).
In the previous match against Kladivar, he was dominant on defence despite the defeat, making two clearances, two assists, blocking one shot and intercepting one ball. He also again won 100% of his fights in the air (two out of two) and two out of three on the ground.
He also showed his quality on the ball, completing 94% of his passes, one of which was crucial, and of course he was one of the scorers.
Tottenham will need all hands on deck in a busy few weeks and someone would be wise to drag Romero along for a chat at Hotspur Way to make sure he doesn’t get himself into unnecessary trouble in the next three games.