Cristian Romero is set to complete his move to Tottenham Hotspur after a £47million fee was agreed with Atalanta.
According to Sky Sports, Romero will now fly to London to undergo a medical and agree personal terms on a five-year contract.
The next steps are believed to be little more than a formality and will make the Argentine centre-back the second most expensive signing in the club’s history behind Tanguy Ndombele.
While Ndombele has shown occasional flashes of brilliance since arriving from Lyon in July 2019, Spurs are hopeful that Romero will deliver on a consistent basis.
Nuno Espirito Santo was appointed as manager just over a month ago and has been keen to strengthen the Tottenham defence.
Toby Alderweireld was sold to Al-Duhail last week, leaving Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier and Joe Rodon as their remaining centre-backs.
Sanchez and Dier both made costly mistakes during a difficult season and Rodon has limited experience at the top level.
In contrast, Romero has played regularly in Serie A over the last three years, proving himself as one of the league’s most reliable defenders.
A clever, disciplined and fiercely competitive centre-back, Romero started his career with Belgrano, before moving to Italy to sign for Genoa in July 2018.
He impressed during his first season in European football, signing for Juventus and spending the next two years on loan.
Most recently, Romero helped Atalanta to third in the league and the final of the Coppa Italia, which they lost 2-1 to Juventus.
He was named as the best defender in Serie A and earned a place in the Argentina squad for the Copa America, starting alongside Nicolas Otamendi as they beat Brazil to lift the trophy.
Atalanta exercised their option to sign Romero permanently before agreeing to sell the 23-year-old to Spurs, with Merih Demiral set to replace him.
