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Tottenham captain Cristian Romero was slammed for his red card at Man Utd which "let his team down".

Romero had made headlines earlier this week after a social media post in which he used the word "disgraceful" after referencing how stretched Spurs' squad was after the 2-2 draw with Man City, in an apparent dig at the club's recruitment.

Frank denies Romero is leading player revolt

Romero: Spurs squad depth 'disgraceful'

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It followed a previous social media post in January, in which Romero accused the club's hierarchy of "lies". In a since-edited post, he wrote: "They only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies."

On Thursday, head coach Thomas Frank said the latest matter had been "dealt with internally" and stood by his skipper, starting him on Saturday against United.

However, just 29 minutes into the match, Romero was shown a straight red for a challenge on Casemiro, leaving his team-mates the task of facing in-form United for over an hour with 10 men.

It is Romero's second red card of the season and means he is facing a four-game ban, which will include the north London derby.

"It's an absolute nightmare for Thomas Frank," said former Spurs captain Michael Dawson on Soccer Saturday.

"This is a disaster for Thomas Frank. As a manager, you're sitting in 14th and you're going, 'my captain has come out and said this'. Now he leaves his team down to 10 men.

"I'm baffled. As a captain, you're supposed to lead by example. You leave your team vulnerable, 10 men at Old Trafford.

"Your losing your captain and one of your best players. He's let his team down again today."

Romero has now been sent off six times across all competitions since his Spurs debut in August 2021 - that's more than any other player in the competition in that period.

He has seen red four times in the Premier League - the joint-most by a Spurs player with Younes Kaboul.

He was also dismissed against Liverpool this season in December, when he was handed a fine and an additional game ban for 'failing to leave the field of play promptly'.

Reaction to Romero's red

Here's how we covered Romero's first-half red card on Sky Sports...

Michael Dawson on Soccer Saturday:

"Romero comes through, he thinks there's a tackle there, it's full throttle. He follows through. I don't need Mike Dean. I don't need VAR. It's not going to be overturned. I hope Casemiro is going to be OK."

Sky Sports' Peter Smith:

"Romero caused Frank problems with his social media post this week. He's now given him a major problem on the pitch with that bad tackle.

"What was that word Romero used in his social media post? 'Disgraceful'."

Paul Merson on Soccer Saturday:

"I hope this doesn't get silly and Man Utd win four and five, and then the Tottenham fans are sitting in the pub after going 'if everybody was like Romero we'd be alright, if everybody got stuck in...'

"He's the reason they'll probably get beat now. He's the reason. Unbelievable."

A month of headlines for Romero

January 7 - Accuses club hierarchy of lies

January 8 - Frank defends Romero and calls him a "true captain"

February 2 - Romero uses the word "disgraceful" after referencing the lack of depth in the Spurs squad

February 5 - Frank says he wouldn't have posted that on social media but refers to Romero as passionate and ambitious

February 7 - Romero gets a straight red card for a dreadful tackle at Old Trafford

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Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank has refused to disclose whether Cristian Romero was fined or punished by Spurs after his latest social media comments criticising the club.

Moments after the winter transfer window shut on Monday, Spurs captain Romero described the squad's lack of depth as "disgraceful".

In his press conference on Thursday, Frank repeated several times - "everything has been dealt with internally" - including to a question on whether he had been fined or disciplined.

Romero: Spurs squad depth 'disgraceful'

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When Romero last made a social media post criticising the club, following the defeat to Bournemouth last month when he appeared to blast the club's hierarchy for "lies" in a now-edited post on Instagram, Frank confirmed he had not disciplined his captain.

"It's the beauty of written text is you can read a lot into it," Frank said about the social media post. "And nobody really knows [what he meant], except Cuti [Romero] or the guys who have spoken to him. Everything is dealt with internally.

"It shows that Cuti is extremely passionate. He wants to win, do everything he can with his team-mates to achieve great things. You need to ask him next time you speak to him.

"If you want to know what he meant, you have to ask him. That's the right way to take that question.

"Cuti is a very passionate character and player, who will want to leave everything on the pitch. He's very ambitious and wants to win every single time. Sometimes when you are like that, it can become an outburst. It is something we have of course dealt with, and dealt with internally.

"There's a lot of ways of doing things. Cuti has been very good for us this season and in the past seasons. That's very important to be aware of.

"I wouldn't have done it. That's my message."

Frank: We pay way too much attention to social media

In an Instagram post on Monday, Romero praised his side's ability to come back from 2-0 down to claim a 2-2 draw with Manchester City despite only having "11 players available" according to the Spurs captain.

Those numbers can be contested - Spurs brought on Mathys Tel, Wilson Odobert and Pape Sarr off the bench in a clear indication the club had at least 14 senior players available for the fixture.

One theory put to Frank in his press conference was that Romero was frustrated that he was forced to play against City despite clearly being ill.

Romero was forced off at half-time of the City game with illness, with Frank admitting his captain was struggling with illness in the build-up to their previous game against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League.

"Social media, I can't get rid of it," said Frank. "It's what some people call the future, or whatever it is.

"One thing I do know: we all definitely put too much attention to social media. All of us. It seems like everything is written on social media is the truth.

"Everything we take: that's the truth. That's a challenge in general, overall. That's the way it is. We deal with it."

Asked if it was a worry that several Spurs played 'liked' the post on Instagram, Frank replied: "First and foremost, we don't know what a like means.

"There are so many words in the post: does that like [act as a reaction to]: 'well done guys, you did amazingly when I had to go off at half-time]'. If that's the like, then perfect."

Is Frank happy with the transfer window?

Romero's apparent attack on Spurs' squad depth meant questions were put to Frank about whether he was happy with the transfer window just gone.

Spurs brought in Conor Gallagher and young left-back Souza to the squad - but failed in signing Antoine Semenyo and Andy Robertson, who joined Man City and remained at Liverpool respectively.

"I think we signed Conor Gallagher, which is a quality player for the starting XI," said Frank. "Of course no one is promised any position, but we signed a quality player and a young player for the future [in Souza].

"If you compare it to other Premier League clubs, that's very good. Where we are, it's ok. We tried to do more, but it was not possible for whatever reason.

"It is very, very important that we take good decisions in the calm - both for the long and short term.

"Of course we looked at loan options, we looked at longer-term options. It was not the case we wanted to sign five players."

Asked if he regrets letting Brennan Johnson join Crystal Palace - given no attacking replacements were brought in, Frank replied: "There are a lot of moving parts in every decision when you sell a player or sign one.

"If you have a 3-4-3, then you have five available players [in the frontline]. Then Richy [Richarlison] could be back so that's six. Then Mo [Kudus] is back so it's seven. So from that perspective then that's ok."

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