Roberto De Zerbi has weighed in on the future of Richarlison after the Brazilian netted a stoppage-time winner for Tottenham against Chelsea in Sydney on Saturday.
According to reports, Spurs are looking to make multiple additions to their forward line before the window slams shut, which means that we could see more in the coming weeks.
Richarlison continues to be linked with a move away from Spurs despite ending last season as the club’s top goalscorer.
The 29-year-old has only a year left on his contract at Tottenham, and he showed again in Sydney that he has a knack for being in the right place at the right time, a quality appreciated by the Spurs head coach.
Roberto De Zerbi admits Tottenham will not find it easy to replace Richarlison
Some sources have said over recent days that Spurs will only sell the former Everton man once they secure a replacement.
De Zerbi believes that upgrading on Richarlison will not be easy for Tottenham, given that he is a proven goalscorer at Premier League level.
When asked if he expects the striker to stay or leave, De Zerbi told Football.London: “I don’t know, because I like him as a player, as a guy, it’s unbelievable the attitude and behaviour, but at the end we have to respect what he wants to do. And we know, every one of us knows what he wants to do.
“But for me he’s still an important player, because it’s not so easy to find another striker like Richarlison, because Richarlison scores goals and he knows the way. The new striker, we don’t know. The other striker, we don’t know. He scored 12 goals last season, not through luck, because he feels the way to score.”
De Zerbi hints Richarlison is unsure about his Spurs future
According to a recent update from TEAMtalk, Richarlison’s preference is to join another Premier League side even if he is to leave Spurs this summer.
De Zerbi has now admitted that he is unsure what the striker wants to do and revealed that he plans to hold further talks with the Brazil international over his future.
When asked if Richarlison wants to leave Tottenham, the Italian responded: “I don’t know, I didn’t understand well, because sometimes he said to stay, sometimes he leaves. We have to speak anyway, there is not any problem, he’s a lovely guy. All of us love him, the teammates, the club, the staff, because he works hard every day, seriously every day, and we can’t say anything on the pitch.”