Tottenham vice-captain, Cristian Romero, has always struggled with disciplinary issues on the field.
However, the Argentine defender has admitted that it is part of the game that he is working on and appears to have redeemed himself since the beginning of this year.
In an admirable display of discipline, Romero has not received a single booking in 2024. During this period, the centre-back started in 6 games and even captained the side on four occasions, yet he has maintained his composure. (Transfermarkt)
In contrast, up until last year in the ongoing campaign, the 25-year-old received four yellow cards and even one red card, resulting in Romero’s absence from three crucial Premier League fixtures, during which Spurs suffered two defeats.
Romero picked up the red card against Chelsea last November with a tackle on Enzo Fernandez, marking the fourth occasion he had been sent off in all competitions since the start of the 2021-22 season, the most of any Premier League player.
The former Atalanta defender, who scored the winning goal for the Lilywhites on Saturday afternoon in the London Derby against Crystal Palace, reflected on his disciplinary improvement after the game.
Romero acknowledged that he had been working on this after realising he had accumulated too many cards recently.
He stated (via Last Word On Spurs):
“It’s something I’ve worked on. I’ve realised I’ve been picking up too many cards at some points here and there.”
”When you’re a defender, you have to tackle, my style has lent itself to picking up cards in the past.”
“Through working on it you can try to eradicate certain things, maybe daft yellow cards for protesting too much, or clashing with someone.”
”With the style of defender I am, those clashes can be unavoidable sometimes if you have a face-off with someone.”
“I respect every opponent and team I play against and whatever clash happens it stays on the field.”
”I’ve been working on it and hopefully eradicating some of those cards.”