Two EPL Giants fighting for Cristian Romero Signature

Posted on June 17, 2021 by Juan Pablo

Cristian Romero enjoyed a stellar season with Atalanta during the 2020-21 Italy Serie A campaign and while he has one more year left on his current two-season loan deal with La Dea after joining Juventus last summer, he might cut that deal short in order to move to England.

According to a report from Samuel Bannister from TeamTalk, Liverpool have leapfrogged Manchester United in the race to sign Cristian Romero. The Argentina international has been linked with a Premier League switch following his stellar displays with Atalanta and after he was called up to the Argentina squad for the most recent round of the World Cup Qualifiers, and now all signs point toward him moving to England’s top-tier.

Atalanta know Romero’s market value is getting higher by the day and know they can get some good profit for the cultured defender, who’s widely viewed as one of the best centre-backs in the Serie A as of now. Liverpool need to strengthen their defensive line and while adding Ibrahima Konate was a step in the right direction, the signing of Romero could give The Reds massive depth in what was a position of need last season. Let’s remember Liverpool also have Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez under contract, as well as promising young centre-back Sepp van den Berg waiting on the wings.

Liverpool is not alone on the race to sign Romero, though, as Manchester United have also been linked with a switch for the 23-year-old defender. The Old Trafford side are looking to sign a long-term partner for Harry Maguire and Romero would fit the bill, though it’s unclear how much of an upgrade over Victor Lindelof he might be. Plus, Atalanta already rejected Manchester United’s first approach for the defender. 

Atalanta are looking to receive around €50 million for the services of their young starlet, a figure neither Manchester United nor Liverpool are willing to pay. That said, the overall belief here is that the Reds are a few steps ahead of Manchester United when it comes to their chances of getting a deal done.

Romero made 31 appearances for Atalanta during the 2020-21 Serie A season, notching two goals and three assists. He also appeared in four Coppa Italia contests and in seven UEFA Champions League matches, tallying three goals, five assists and 42 total appearances for La Dea in 2020-21.