Tottenham captain Cristian Romero will not be in attendance for final game against Everton

Instead of attending Tottenham's crucial final game of the season against Everton, club captain Cristian Romero will return to Argentina to watch boyhood club Belgrano take on River Plate.

Romero, who was ruled out for the rest of the season in April after suffering a knee injury, has been a regular fixture in the stands as Tottenham fight against relegation.

In fact, he joined in the celebrations when Mathys Tel scored a goal against Leeds this month and even took out a member of Spurs' coaching staff after making his way onto the touchline.

However, he will not be in North London on Sunday afternoon after it emerged that the Argentine will attend the final of the Argentine Championship between Belgrano and River Plate.

It is a game that means a great deal to Romero, who graduated through Belgrano's academy before making his first-team debut for the Primera Division club as a teenager.

Speaking on talkSPORT about Romero's decision to snub a game that will decide Tottenham's Premier League fate, host Paul Hawksbee ripped into the Argentine.

"Good club captain, then. Not at Tottenham's biggest game since 1976 - fantastic," he said. "True to the end, good old Cristian."

South American football expert Tim Vickery responded by giving some context to Romero's actions. "I knew this would wind you up," he laughed. "Belgrano are Romero's club. It's the club where he started, and he's a fan.

"Belgrano have never won the Argentine Championship, and they are going to River Plate, who have won more than anyone else, so this is historic."

Vickery added: "15 years ago, these two met in the play-off that relegated River Plate, and if Tottenham going down is off the scale, River Plate going down is even more off the scale."

Hawksbee, however, was far from moved by the story. "I'll be wearing my River Plate shirt at the weekend. I think that's terrible," said the presenter.

"He goes and watches the club he supports as opposed to the club captain of a team that's threatened with relegation that he's not there with the lads and all the other injured players.

"But you know, I mean as I said true at the end I always thought that Cristian Romero was just passing through and that Tottenham were a distraction from Argentina. But I am quite bitter."

Fans react to Cristian Romero's decision to snub Tottenham's final game of the season

As expected, Romero has been widely criticised by the Spurs faithful.

One fan wrote: "The captain of Tottenham Hotspur choosing to personally miss the club’s biggest-ever league match in our recent modern history. Romero should never be allowed to put on a Spurs shirt ever again. Damning indictment of a culture which has been allowed to manifest inside our club."

A second said: "I have always, ALWAYS defended Romero, how he plays and all the controversy that has come along with him, but if this is true, he shouldn’t be allowed back inside Hotspur Way when the season is over."

A third commented: "Absolutely disgraceful," and a fourth wrote: "Off you pop. Club captain and you can’t even be bothered to show your face in the club’s biggest game in years, instead you go to Argentina? Poor, Cuti. Really poor."

A fifth added: "I’ll forever be grateful for his incredible contribution in Bilbao on this day last year, but I just don’t see any way back from this. A really sad way to go out."

Tottenham, who have never been relegated from the Premier League in its 34-year history, could still face the drop on the final day of the season. They currently sit two points ahead of third-bottom West Ham.