Roberto De Zerbi has expressed his hope that Tottenham captain Cristian Romero will be fit enough to feature for Argentina at this summer’s World Cup, even if only for a game or two, as the defender recovers from a serious knee injury that ended his domestic season.
Romero was forced off in tears during Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat at Sunderland two weeks ago, a match that marked De Zerbi’s debut as head coach. The Argentine centre-half collided with his own goalkeeper, Antonin Kinsky, shortly after the home side had taken a second-half lead. Replays suggested Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey may have nudged Romero into the contact. He received lengthy treatment on the pitch before being replaced by Kevin Danso.
Initial assessments have confirmed a high-grade partial tear of Romero’s medial cruciate ligament. Crucially, he has not suffered any collateral ligament damage and will not require surgery — factors that have preserved a measure of optimism about his World Cup prospects. The expected recovery period is five to eight weeks, a timeline that would allow him to regain fitness before Argentina begin their title defence in the United States, Canada and Mexico, provided there are no further complications. Argentina’s national team is closely monitoring his rehabilitation, although he may arrive without full match sharpness.
De Zerbi confirmed last week that Romero would miss Tottenham’s remaining Premier League fixtures, a major blow for a club locked in a relegation battle. The 49-cap international is regarded as an influential defensive figure, and his absence places added responsibility on Kevin Danso and Micky van de Ven. De Zerbi has challenged his squad to step up and has not yet named a replacement captain.
Speaking about Romero’s hopes of representing his country, De Zerbi said: “I hope. I don’t know if there is a chance to play one game, two games, I don’t know. I hope so. But I don’t know. But for him, I would like it if he can be available to play in the World Cup, especially for an Argentinian player. They feel the national team more than Italian players or other nations.” The Italian, who was appointed on a five-year contract at the end of March, acknowledged that Romero is “suffering” because of his inability to help Tottenham in their fight against relegation.
Kudus faces World Cup uncertainty
De Zerbi’s concerns over World Cup availability extend to a second key player. Mohammed Kudus, the Ghana international, has suffered a setback in his recovery from a serious quad injury and will not play again for Spurs this season. The forward has been out since January, when he sustained the injury during a fixture against Sunderland, and a return to team training earlier this month has not gone according to plan.
Spurs confirmed in a statement at the start of April that they were assessing whether Kudus would require surgery. When pressed for an update, De Zerbi said he had not spoken to the club’s doctors about the situation, with his attention focused entirely on steering Tottenham out of the relegation zone — the club are currently two points adrift of safety with a limited number of games remaining.
“I don’t know [if Kudus will require surgery],” De Zerbi said. “[I have] not spoken with the doctor about the Kudus situation.” The setback places the Ghana international’s participation in the World Cup under serious threat. De Zerbi had previously described Kudus as a “crucial player” for him.
Romero’s injury is compounded by an already lengthy list of absentees at Tottenham, including Dejan Kulusevski (knee), James Maddison (ACL), Guglielmo Vicario (groin), Ben Davies (ankle), Wilson Odobert (ACL), Pape Matar Sarr (shoulder) and Destiny Udogie (muscular injury). For Argentina, Romero’s potential absence would join a list of confirmed unavailabilities that already includes Juan Foyth and Joaquín Panichelli, with reports of internal turmoil at the Argentine Football Association adding further uncertainty to the reigning champions’ preparations.
