After Tottenham Hotspur's heavy defeat, an unexpected controversy erupted. Claims even surfaced that captain Cristian Romero requested a goalkeeper substitution during the match, sparking debate among fans.
Tottenham lost 2-5 to Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 of the 2025-2026 season at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano in Madrid, Spain, on the 11th (Korea time). With this defeat, Tottenham fell into a club-record six consecutive official losses for the first time in club history, and their chances of advancing to the quarterfinals dimmed.
From the early stages of the match Tottenham showed serious confusion. Starting goalkeeper Antoni Kinsky slipped while trying to take a goal kick in the sixth minute of the first half and failed to clear the ball properly, and Marcos Llorente, who collected the ball, immediately connected with a shot to score the opening goal.
Mistakes continued. In the 14th minute of the first half, defender a person surnamed Van de Ven failed to handle the ball properly as he fell, and Antoine Griezmann, taking advantage of the gap, added another goal.
Tottenham's nightmare scenes did not end there. In the 15th minute of the first half Kinsky made another passing error, which Julián Álvarez intercepted to score a third goal. Conceding three goals in just 15 minutes effectively tilted the match early on.
Ultimately, coach Igor Tudor made a decisive call. At the 17th minute of the first half he withdrew Kinsky and brought on Guglielmo Vicario. It was a highly unusual decision to substitute a goalkeeper when there was no injury. Kinsky left the pitch with a dejected expression.
But even after the substitution Tottenham's momentum did not change. In the 22nd minute of the first half they conceded another goal to Romain Le Normand, widening the score gap. Pedro Porro pulled one back to make it 1-4 by halftime, but in the second half Álvarez scored again to extend it to 1-5. Tottenham narrowed the margin with a Dominic Solanke goal but ultimately finished with a 2-5 defeat.
The player who received the most criticism in the match was Kinsky, but questions were also raised about Tudor's decision. Kinsky, a 22-year-old goalkeeper who joined in the latter part of last season, had been serving as Vicario's backup this season. The decision to start a player who had only appeared twice in the English Football League Cup as a starter in an important Champions League round of 16 match sparked controversy.
Moreover, because the substitution was made just 17 minutes into the match, concerns were raised that it could have a negative psychological impact on Kinsky.
In the process, captain Romero's actions became another topic of interest. British outlet The Sun reported that Tottenham fans claim Romero influenced the decision to replace Kinsky.
The outlet said a scene was captured in which Tudor spoke with Romero just before Tudor decided on the goalkeeper substitution.
According to the report, immediately after the third conceded goal Romero walked to the touchline, approached Tudor and whispered something in the Croatian coach's ear before returning to the field. Shortly afterward the goalkeeper substitution took place, prompting speculation among fans.
The scene quickly spread on social media. Fans offered various reactions such as "Romero told Igor Tudor to take Kinsky off," "Romero looks like he asked Tudor for the substitution," and "what on earth is happening with this team?"
Some fans said they understood Romero's judgment. One fan said, "Even if that is true, I don't see it as a problem. In a 0-3 situation Kinsky's psychological state was already at rock bottom and a bigger disaster could have occurred."
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