Meet the 25-year-old Brazil international forward who just became the newest member of Antonio Conte’s Spurs squad headed for Champions League football in 2022-23.
After weeks of speculation, Richarlison is the newest member of Tottenham Hotspur for 2022-23, completing a transfer from Everton. With 53 goals in 152 games across all competitions for his former team, the Brazil international striker possesses the quality to play at the top of a formation, but he’s additionally a hardworking footballer capable of manning any position within the front three or in the attacking midfield with toughness, grit, passion, and a dash of flair.
Prying the player away from Everton cost Tottenham a fee of just over $72 million. He arrives with a five-year contract in place, ensuring that the club has a proven, long-term proven goal-scoring option if ever becomes time to bid farewell to iconic No. 9 Harry Kane or world-class winger Son Heung-min.
Before the Premier League season ended, Spurs manager Antonio Conte insisted that the club needed to sign at least four to six players before returning to the pitch for pre-season matches, and so far, he has gotten his wish, with Richarlison joining Yves Bissouma, Ivan Perisic, and Fraser Forster among the new arrivals. And with a hunger to acquire even more talent, Tottenham remains linked to some of the best players in Europe with an eye toward making as much noise as possible in the UEFA Champions League.
With all this in mind, let’s dive into the details of the transfer, the ways in which the 25-year-old Richarlison fits in with his new teammates, and how he gives Conte more flexibility in Spurs’ starting XI.
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Richarlison Contract & Transfer Details
Contract length: 5 years
Expected weekly wages: Not reported
Free agency: 2027
Base transfer fee: $60,500,000 (£50,000,000)
Maximum transfer fee: $72,600,000 (£60,000,000)
Estimated market value: $52,800,000 (via Transfermarkt)
Richarlison’s Stats & Career Accolades
Everton (2018-22)
Games: 152
Goals: 53
Assists: 14
Watford (2017-18)
Games: 40
Goals: 5
Assists: 5
Fluminense (2016-17)
Games: 46
Goals: 11
Assists: 7
Campeonato Carioca Team of the Year (2017)
América Mineiro (2015-16)
Games: 24
Goals: 9
Assists: 4
Brazil (2018-present)
Games: 34
Goals: 14
Assists: 6
Copa América winner (2019)
Olympic gold medal (2021)
Led all players at the Tokyo Olympics with five goals scored
How Richarlison Fits in with Spurs
As a five-time domestic league champion as a player and as a manager, Antonio Conte knows what it means to admire versatility and hard work — and without possessing those two qualities, it’s hard for anyone to make it onto a Conte team sheet, no matter what level of talent is on offer. Richarlison passes this bar, and he’s got a penchant for creating chaos for opposing defenses to boot.
Last season, he scored 10 goals and assisted five times in 30 Premier League games for Everton. The team needed every last bit of his output to “Spur” themselves away from relegation, as they finished 16th overall in the league and just four points above the relegation zone.
Heading into the new season, Conte has the flexibility to change formations and personnel. Son and Kane respectively key the attack on the left wing and at center forward unquestionably; however, Conte has the freedom to play Richarlison on the right wing and implement an experimental role for Dejan Kulusevski behind him at right wingback in his world-famous 3-4-3 formation.
If he wants to switch things up, he also has the liberty to play a 4-3-3 with Kulusevski in an advanced midfield role; Richarlison could also simply be used as a backup option across three or four different attacking roles, a key asset Spurs lacked last season.
With so much attacking verve, Conte has the luxury of being able to fine-tune the squad based on what the competition dictates; All told, with additional Champions League fixtures on the calendar, Richarlison figures to get the game time he desires, but also do it on the game’s biggest stage.
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