Tottenham captain Cristian Romero criticised figures inside the club in a social media statement after Spurs’ 3-2 defeat at Bournemouth, having earlier posted and deleted an even stronger message accusing the hierarchy of spreading "lies", intensifying scrutiny on head coach Thomas Frank during an already tense period for the team.
The loss at Vitality Stadium came through Antoine Semenyo’s 95th-minute winner, leaving Spurs 14th in the Premier League table and seven points behind the top four places, while recent form showed only one win from six league matches over the festive run, adding to growing frustration among supporters.
Romero’s first post, which was later removed, reportedly referred to "lies" from within Tottenham, before the Argentina
defender published an almost identical message without that specific accusation, though the revised version still appeared to direct criticism towards senior decision-makers at Spurs and their visibility during difficult periods.
In the updated message, Romero addressed fans directly and also appeared to challenge others at Tottenham to share responsibility publicly during this run of poor results, arguing that certain people tend to appear only when performances and results place Spurs in a positive light.
"Apologies to all fans of you who follow us everywhere, who are always there and will continue to be,Romero posted. We are responsible, there's no doubt about that. But we will keep facing up to it and trying to turn the situation around, for ourselves and for the club. At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don'tas has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well. We'll stay here, working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all together, is part of football.
Tottenham’s recent league record added context to the tension, with statistics showing that since the start of last season only Wolves, on 36 defeats, had lost more Premier League matches than Spurs, whose 30 losses matched the totals recorded by West Ham and Southampton over the same period.
Supporter unrest around Frank had been growing before the Bournemouth match, with jeers following home draws against Brentford on New Year’s Day and Sunderland on the previous Sunday, and the latest reverse on the South Coast seemed to deepen that discontent inside the fanbase.
The mood around the squad also appeared strained at full-time against Bournemouth, when Micky van de Ven and Joao Palhinha exchanged words with travelling Tottenham supporters, while Pedro Porro had to be held back from a confrontation by goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario near the away end.
There was further scrutiny on Frank before kick-off when images circulated online that appeared to show the head coach drinking from a coffee cup carrying the badge of Tottenham’s local rivals Arsenal, an image that drew attention from Spurs fans already unhappy with the team’s league position and recent performances.
Upcoming fixtures will test whether Tottenham and Frank can stabilise results and ease some of the pressure, with Spurs returning to north London for an FA Cup third-round tie against Aston Villa on Saturday before facing city rivals West Ham in the Premier League on 17 January.
