Tottenham Hotspur managing director Fabio Paratici admitted that he is “so convinced” by summer signing Richarlison this season after his impressive start to life in north London.
The Brazilian is one of eight new signings to walk through the doors this summer, with Spurs spending more than £150million as a result, and a number of those fresh faces have already impressed in what has been a strong start to the campaign for Antonio Conte's side.
But it is Richarlison in particular who has received special praise from Paratici, who sung the praises of the £60m signing from Everton ahead of his brace in Wednesday’s Champions League victory over Marseille.
Speaking to SPURSPLAY, Paratici said: “We are so convinced by him so far. Because this kind of style of football I think is perfect for us. Not just technically speaking, but about character. He’s a fighter, he has big energy, he can play in three positions in the forward line. He has great experience in the Premier League and in the national team in Brazil.”
Richarlison has had to be patient for game time since arriving at the club more than two months ago, with a suspension carried over from last season ruling him out of Tottenham ’s first game of the season in their 4-1 victory over Southampton.
He made his debut the following week against Chelsea, but substitute appearances were as good as it got for the Brazilian in his first four games for the north London outfit, although he grabbed himself an assist for Harry Kane’s second goal against Nottingham Forest in a 2-0 win on August 28.
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However, it wasn’t long before Conte opted to include him in his starting XI, with Richarlison making his first start for the club in the 2-1 victory over Fulham last weekend, where the Brazilian got himself another assist as Spurs continued their unbeaten start to the season.
He even had a goal chalked off for offside, but he impressed the Tottenham faithful and his manager so much that he continued to start ahead of Dejan Kulusevski on the right wing for Wednesday’s Champions League Group D opener against Marseille - grabbing both goals on the night.
A man of the match performance saw him take his tally to two goals and two assists in his first six games for the Lilywhites, and now leaves his manager with a selection headache for Tottenham’s forthcoming fixtures as he competes alongside Kulusevski, Kane and Son Heung-min for a place in the front three.
Spurs also signed Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Clement Lenglet, Djed Spence and Destiny Udogie this summer, with the latter being sent back on loan to Udinese for the remainder of the campaign, while Cristian Romero’s loan deal was made permanent.
Besides Romero, the rest have also had to be patient in earning their first starts of the campaign. Perisic was brought in against Wolves, Nottingham Forest and West Ham, with Bissouma also earning his full debut in that draw with the Hammers, while Lenglet was introduced against Fulham last week alongside Richarlison.
Lenglet, Perisic and Richarlison then started from the off in midweek, with the trio showing their worth to the club and highlighting the importance of their signings this summer, as the work by Paratici and Conte continues to prove effective in what could be a huge season for the Spurs.
