Richarlison has publicly voiced his frustration after Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi confirmed he would be left out of the squad for Tuesday's Carabao Cup tie against Liverpool. The Brazil forward responded to a post carrying De Zerbi's comments by writing "Why?" alongside a crying emoji, The response highlighted his frustration over the decision.
De Zerbi had made his position unambiguous in a press conference, stating plainly that Richarlison would not play, even in the Carabao Cup, regardless of his availability. While the 29-year-old has already been excluded from Tottenham's 25-man Premier League squad, he remained technically eligible for cup competitions — a loophole De Zerbi has now closed by ruling him out entirely.
The situation stems from Richarlison informing the club during pre-season that he wanted to leave, after which De Zerbi offered him a new contract. Richarlison turned that down, and the manager's stance since has been that he only wants players in his squad who genuinely want to be there. Richarlison started the season opener, a 3-0 defeat to Brentford, before dropping out of the matchday group entirely following a subsequent loss to Newcastle, with De Zerbi explaining the decision by pointing to how often the forward had expressed a desire to leave.
Compounding matters, a series of possible exits for Richarlison have all fallen through this summer, including a close-run return to former club Everton, along with reported interest from clubs in Turkey and Brazil's Vasco da Gama. As it stands, he cannot feature in the Premier League again until January at the earliest, leaving him in a state of limbo at a club he was Spurs' top scorer for last season, netting 12 goals, before summer attacking additions including Sávio and Omar Marmoush arrived.
Speaking further on the situation, De Zerbi was careful to frame it as a dispute between player and club rather than something rooted in his own conduct as manager, saying the issue lies in the relationship between Richarlison and Tottenham rather than any personal grievance on his part.
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