Why Cristian Romero is absent for Tottenham vs Arsenal

Updated: July 22, 2022 at 12:16 am GMT+1

An explanation for the absence of star defender Cristian Romero from Tottenham Hotspur's squad to face Arsenal has been provided on Thursday evening.

The latest edition of the North London Derby is of course set to play out in short order.

Amid the tense ongoing battle for the Premier League's final top-4 berth, Spurs will play host to Arsenal, in the knowledge that a defeat would see their hopes of a return to the Champions League brought to a definitive end for another season.

In turn, it no doubt came as a blow to all associated with the Lilywhites to learn that, a short time ago, one of the club's star performers was ruled out of Thursday night's action.

The player in question? Cristian Romero.

Upon Antonio Conte's latest matchday XI being unveiled, summer arrival Romero was nowhere to be seen:

Your #NorthLondonDerby starting XI! ✊ pic.twitter.com/mbnjfic7fO
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) May 12, 2022

Injury blow

And an explanation for as much, as alluded to above, has since been provided.

As per Tottenham reporter Dan Kilpatrick, Romero misses out on the derby owing to an unspecified injury problem, the extent of which is yet to be revealed:

#thfc Romero misses out through injury in a major blow for Spurs. Sanchex makes his first start since the 2-0 defeat to Wolves in mid-February. Otherwise unchanged from Liverpool. https://t.co/KflEHyeQcm
— Dan Kilpatrick (@Dan_KP) May 12, 2022

*Update* - Antonio Conte has since confirmed that his star stopper is suffering with a hip complaint:

Cristian Romero misses out with a hip injury picked up against Liverpool. Conte just said: "In the game against Liverpool he received a hit on his hip. After the game he had pain and is not right to recover."
— Alasdair Gold (@AlasdairGold) May 12, 2022

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Conor Laird

Die-hard Juventus fan with a love for all things Italian, and a real soft spot for Arsenal cult heroes. Emmanuel Eboue, Nicklas Bendtner, Philippe Senderos... Give them all statues outside the Emirates.