Julian Alvarez has urged Cristian Romero to swap Tottenham for Atleticco Madrid this summer.
There are growing reports of interest in the centre-back from Spain, with both Atleti and city rivals Real Madrid credited with interest.
Romero, 27, who joined Spurs permanently in 2022 in a deal worth £42million, still has two years left to run on his contract. During his time at Spurs he has won the World Cup and Copa America with Argentina.
Alvarez, a team-mate of Romero's at international level, has further stoked the flames of speculation by telling AS: "I hope [he joins]! I hope it happens.
"He's a great player. One of the best centre-backs in the world, in my opinion. A team-mate on the national team and a great person. Such a great addition to the team would be a great help."
The former Manchester City forward added: “[Atleti] feels more like Argentina compared to the Premier League.
“Maybe also because of the language, or, as we were saying, there are many Argentinian team-mates, the coach too, and so I felt a bit more like Argentina. It's like a family, very close.
"The passion, courage, and heart that Atleti identifies with is felt a bit more from within."
It remains to be seen if Spurs would entertain a sale, though are in a strong bargaining position should they decide to do so.
Spurs failed in a last-ditch attempt to sign Marc Guehi during the January transfer window, suggesting they remain in the market for a new centre-back this summer even if loanee Kevin Danso joins permanently, as expected.
Romero has made no secret of his desire to play in La Liga, telling TyC Sports last month: "La Liga is left for me to play in, I would love to, to tell you the truth. I would love to play there because it’s the league I’m missing."
Romero added: "I try to above all live the day to day. There are almost two months until the championship ends and in my head it’s always [about] performing to the maximum, trying to finish in the best way possible.
"We’re in the semi-final of the Europa League. It’s an important step for the club after so many years where they hadn’t reached those stages. To say I’m happy [with that]? No, because in the end I want to win it, but it depends on a lot of things.
"After that, once the championship finishes, we’ll see. The truth is I haven’t spoken to my representative yet but I’m open to anything.
"In my head, I always [think about] growing, also [about] going to new places to keep growing but I don’t want to talk about that yet because there’s a few months left of the championship."
