Richarlison Omitted from Tottenham's Premier League Squad

Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed their Premier League squad – and the headline is not who made it, but who didn’t. Richarlison, last season’s top scorer, has been left out entirely.

The 29-year-old, who hit 11 goals in 32 league appearances last term, now finds himself frozen out and in a kind of professional no-man’s land. While injured names such as Simons and Odobert were still registered, Richarlison’s name was missing, a stark line in the sand after a summer spent pushing to leave the club.

Roberto De Zerbi did not try to sugar-coat the situation. He also made it clear he would not carry the can for the final call.

“It was not my decision. It is the normal decision,” the former Brighton and Marseille manager said when asked about the omission. “I think Richarlison, he decided everything alone. He spoke with me at the beginning of the pre-season and told me his idea and desire was to leave.

“At the end we go to bring another striker in and like I said at the beginning of the pre-season, I want to keep the players, just the players that want to stay and be proud and with the right passion to stay here.”

The message was blunt: if you don’t want the shirt, you don’t keep the place.

De Zerbi repeatedly pushed the responsibility upstairs, underlining that the final registration call lies with the club hierarchy, not the head coach.

“Then for everything and other problems, it is not my business and not my job. It is the responsibility of the club,” he said. “I can’t say nothing because I didn’t decide anything. The message of Richarlison from the beginning of the season has been very clear. I accepted that and for me there is nothing to say.”

The fall has been rapid. Richarlison started the opening league game of the campaign against Brentford, still ostensibly part of De Zerbi’s plans. Since then, the landscape has shifted around him.

Omar Marmoush has arrived from Manchester City. Mykhailo Mudryk has come in on loan from Chelsea. Savio has joined from City as well. Three fresh attacking options, all hungry to impress, have shoved the Brazilian down the pecking order and, ultimately, out of the 25-man squad.

For De Zerbi, that competition is not a problem to manage but a filter. Those who want to fight stay. Those who don’t, go.

“If you don’t want to stay here, I don’t want to keep talking in the press conference. Go out – you have the freedom to go out,” he said, laying out his stance in stark terms. “If you don’t want to stay, why do we have to keep you on the list? Why do you have to stay?

“I’m not Vinai, I’m not the sporting director, I am the coach and I would like to work with the people hungry if they don’t play but happy to stay in this club.”

Tottenham’s squad list now reflects that philosophy. The question is whether Richarlison finds a way back from this exile – or whether this is the full stop on his Spurs story.