Tottenham: Richarlison dropped by De Zerbi, contract termination mooted

Richarlison is no longer part of Roberto De Zerbi's plans at Tottenham. The Brazilian forward has been left out of the squad registered for the Premier League, and his future in London is now the subject of discussions, with the possibility of a contract termination having been raised in recent days.

Contrary to some reports circulating, Richarlison has indeed played this season. His last competitive appearance came on August 22, in Tottenham's 3-0 defeat to Brentford. Starting as the team's focal point in attack, he played 68 minutes before being replaced by Dominic Solanke. He then remained on the bench in the 26 August League Cup win against Charlton without coming on.

A 12-goal 2025-2026 season

The decision to leave him out comes after a fairly productive 2025-2026 season statistically. Richarlison had featured in 43 of Tottenham's 52 matches, a personal record since joining the club. He had scored 12 goals in all competitions, including 11 in the Premier League. In particular, he scored against Chelsea on May 19 and against Aston Villa a few weeks earlier.

His last appearance of the previous season came on May 24 against Everton. He played 73 minutes in the Spurs' 1-0 victory.

Read also: Richarlison set to become Mohamed Salah's teammate?

De Zerbi explains the situation

Roberto De Zerbi confirmed that Richarlison was no longer being used, including in the League Cup. The Italian coach said that the Brazilian had told him he wanted to leave Tottenham.

“At the start of this season, I spoke with him several times to convince him to stay, and he did not want to,” De Zerbi explained. The coach also said that he could not “pray every day” for the player to stay.

Tottenham ultimately did not register Richarlison on its list of 25 players for the 2026-2027 Premier League season. The club also recorded his absence from the squad for the League Cup match against Liverpool, even though he was theoretically eligible for the competition.

An amicable termination is now being discussed, but this aspect of the matter has not yet been officially confirmed by Tottenham or the player.

Nouya M'toama

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Versatile journalist specializing in sports and political news, with extensive experience across radio, print and digital media platforms.

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