Radu Dragusin has been given an unlikely Spurs lifeline – they need him to grab it

Tottenham Hotspur’s Europa League push and Premier League stability may hinge on a player who, only weeks ago, appeared surplus to requirements. Radu Dragusin, the 23-year-old Romanian centre-back, has been thrust back into the spotlight after a cruel sequence of injuries to team-mates reopened a pathway he feared had closed for good.

Dragusin’s re-emergence is remarkable given the context. On 28 December he ended an 11-month absence caused by a ruptured ACL, jogging on for the closing moments of the 1-0 win at Crystal Palace to a heartfelt ovation. Yet the sentiment inside Selhurst Park could not mask reality: Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero had become an immovable first-choice pairing, while January arrival Kevin Danso had leap-froggen Dragusin as the dependable deputy. Serie A clubs enquired about a loan; Spurs said no.

Fate, however, has intervened. Van de Ven’s “minor” knock kept him out of the Eintracht Frankfurt and Manchester City fixtures, and Danso then damaged a big-toe ligament in Germany, leaving Spurs suddenly light in the one area where they could least afford it. Dragusin was handed a surprise start against City on 1 February, his first since January 2025. Operating on the left of a back three, he endured a jittery opening: Rayan Cherki ghosted past him in the build-up to the opener, and a heavy clearance presented City with their second. Yet the narrative shifted after the interval. Romero’s withdrawal forced a switch to a back four, and Dragusin grew in stature, twice blocking Erling Haaland and helping Tottenham claw back a 2-2 draw that felt like a statement.

Three days later at Old Trafford, Dragusin began on the bench but was summoned after Romero’s red card for a lunge on Casemiro. He completed 67 minutes of the 1-1 stalemate, throwing himself into blocks and headers as United laid siege. With Romero now suspended for four crucial matches—Newcastle, Arsenal, Fulham and Crystal Palace—Dragusin’s calendar has filled up overnight.

Head coach Frank faces a defensive puzzle. A back three would almost certainly feature Van de Ven, Dragusin and Joao Palhinha, with rookie options such as Archie Gray or Djed Spence untested in the role this season. A back four would still leave Dragusin as the senior partner beside Van de Ven. Either way, the Romanian is set to accumulate more minutes in the next month than in the previous year.

The stakes are enormous. Tottenham enter March just outside the Champions League places and cannot afford a slide reminiscent of last spring’s injury-fuelled collapse. Dragusin’s personal stakes are equally high. Up to the moment his knee buckled in a dead-rubber Europa League tie against Elfsborg, he had started 21 of 22 matches between 30 October 2024 and 26 January 2025, often partnering Gray or Ben Davies in the absence of Van de Ven and Romero. The ACL tear halted what had been a breakout campaign; now, unexpectedly, he has the chance to resume that trajectory.

Those who know Dragusin speak of a football obsessive whose only diversion is chess. During rehabilitation he maintained military discipline, returning to the gym at dawn the morning after team-mates celebrated last May’s Europa League triumph. A behind-closed-doors friendly against Leyton Orient in late September—just nine months post-surgery—offered the first evidence that the painstaking work was paying off. James Maddison, himself recovering from ACL surgery, turned up specifically to applaud Dragusin’s 45-minute cameo.

Two years have passed since Tottenham persuaded Dragusin to reject Bayern Munich and swap Genoa for north London. The move has brought flashes of dominance—his aerial command and willingness to engage physically—but also moments of rashness, illustrated against City. The coming weeks will determine which version defines his Spurs career.

Tottenham did not plan to rely on Radu Dragusin in the run-in; now they must. If he seizes the opportunity, an unlikely lifeline could become the making of both player and club.