# Maximiliano Romero

Maximiliano Samuel Romero (born 9 January 1999) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a centre forward for Argentinos Juniors, on loan from Racing Club.

## Club career
### Velez Sarsfield

Before making his professional debut, the Argentine forward was close to being transferred to English side Arsenal, for a reported €6 million fee. However, after suffering a knee cruciate ligament injury in a reserves game in 2015 he stayed with Vélez. Again in 2016 Arsenal were rumoured to be interested in Romero, however nothing came of it.
Romero debuted for Vélez at age 17, entering the field in a 0–1 defeat to Sarmiento for the first fixture of the 2016 Argentine Primera División. He also entered the field in the 2–1 victory against Olimpo for the following fixture, in which he scored his first professional goal. He finished his first professional season with 11 appearances (five as a starter) and three goals. During the 2016–17 Argentine Primera División, Romero was mainly a substitute for Mariano Pavone. He managed to score two goals in 19 games (seven starts).
The forward had a successful start to the 2017–18 Argentine Primera División, scoring a double in each of the first two games of the season (3–0 and 2–0 victories against Tigre and Atlético Tucumán, respectively). He also assisted Federico Andrada to score the winning goal in the team's victory against Aldosivi for the round of 32 of the 2016–17 Copa Argentina.

### PSV Eindhoven

On 21 December 2017, PSV Eindhoven announced Romero would join the club in the January transfer window. The Dutch team signed Romero for €10.5 million and he signed a 5+1⁄2-year deal. Romero was officially presented as a PSV player on 16 January and the club confirmed he would wear the number 22 shirt. It was later announced, that the deal only was a six-month loan deal, followed by a permanent contract from the summer of 2018. Romero was part of the PSV squad that won the Dutch Eredivisie in the 2017–18 season. However, due to multiple injuries and the birth of his son, he did not make a single appearance.
Romero made his first PSV appearance on 11 August 2018, coming on as a substitute against Utrecht. His next appearance did not come until 28 November in the Champions League which was again as a substitute, against FC Barcelona. PSV lost the game 2–1 and were eliminated from the competition's group stage.
In July 2019, he was sent back on loan to Vélez Sarsfield.

### Return to Argentina

On 25 June 2022, Romero extended his contract with PSV until 30 June 2024 and joined Racing Club on a season-long loan. The transfer was made permanent on 1 January 2024. Six days later, he signed a loan deal with Argentinos Juniors until 31 December 2025, under the productivity-based contractual scheme, with an option to purchase 50% of the player's rights.

## Personal life

On 21 March 2018, Romero's partner Florencia Salazar gave birth to the couple's first child, Benjamín.

## Career statistics

    As of match played 4 December 2017
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National Cup | National Cup | Continental | Continental | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Vélez Sarsfield | 2016 | Primera División | 11 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 |
| Vélez Sarsfield | 2016–17 | Primera División | 19 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 2 |
| Vélez Sarsfield | 2017–18 | Primera División | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 |
| Vélez Sarsfield | Total | Total | 40 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 9 |
| PSV | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 41 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 9 |

## Honours

PSV
* KNVB Cup: 2021–22
Racing Club
* Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional: 2022