Romero injury clarifies remaining Tottenham Hotspur transfer needs

Tottenham Hotspur may have signed several players during the transfer window; however, it has not taken long to show it may not be enough. 

Before the offseason began, before the transfer window opened, it was clear what the most pressing needs for Tottenham were the squad and more defenders that fit Antonio Conte’s system. However, with only two weeks to go until deadline day, Tottenham has only brought in one new defender, and now an injury to superstar Cristian Romero may make plain. Spurs need more defenders.

Tottenham should expect to cover for their defenders

Romero is a fantastic defender and makes Spurs a better team when he is on the field. However, this latest injury is the third injury in less than a year for the big Argentine defender, making it clear Spurs need more cover.

Before this knock for Romero, new signing Clement Lenglet missed the match against Chelsea nursing his own injury. And before the season, left-back Ben Davies missed most of the pre-season with a hurt foot.

If we further consider that Eric Dier is guaranteed to miss at least one or two games with injury, it seems obvious that Tottenham does not have enough defenders.

A loan for a loan does not necessarily work

Thus far, Tottenham has brought in Lenglet on loan from Barcelona, and the Frenchman looks a solid fit for Conte’s system. However, that move was offset by Spurs loaning Welsh defender Joe Rodon to Stade Rennais. Thus the net defender increase is zero.

While Lenglet provides more cover for Davies than Rodon, there is still no clear backup for Dier in the middle.

This past weekend, with Lenglet out, Japhet Tanganga was on the bench. Tangnaga’s growth has stagnated over the last several seasons due to a lack of playing time, and he needs his own loan for minutes.

If Tanganga is loaned out, it leaves Tottenham with only two recognized defensive reserves, Davinson Sanchez and Lenglet. Given Sanchez is likely starting already this upcoming weekend for the injured Romero and Lenglet has already missed a game, the cupboard seems almost bare for Conte.

We had all hoped Spurs would get a big-name defender like Alessandro Bastoni. However, it is to the point that simply adding a defender that Conte trusts will improve the team.

Tottenham is only two weeks into the season, and it is clear there is an unmet need, with two weeks left in the window; the question is will Fabio Paratici and Spurs meet it?