Tottenham Hotspur are now preparing for a busy summer transfer window with Ange Postecoglou keen to make changes to his squad.
Tottenham fans were gearing up for a real push for the Champions League places in the final weeks of the season.
A tricky fixture list was common knowledge but Spurs took points off Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City earlier in the season – why not do it again?
The last few weeks have been very damaging though with Tottenham now on a four-game losing streak.
Spurs have lost at the hands of Newcastle United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool in the space of just over three weeks.
The Champions League hopes are dwindling and Ange Postecoglou finds himself under the most intense pressure since he took the job last summer.
Postecoglou has now admitted that he will need to move some players out of Tottenham in order to bring new signings in and shape the squad to his liking.
The Australian will seemingly have the backing to make those changes and one player could be primed for a move away.
Tottenham Hotspur receiving ‘serious’ Richarlison interest
Richarlison was handed a start against Liverpool and at least made an impact in a 4-2 defeat.
The Brazilian scored from close range before setting up Son Heung-min to pull another goal back at Anfield.
Richarlison has now hit 11 goals and four assists in 28 Premier League games this season, which isn’t a bad return at all.
There is clearly an improvement from last season but Richarlison may be viewed as a player who can bring in huge money.
The Athletic claim that there is now ‘serious interest’ in Richarlison from Saudi Arabia.
The proposed deal would allegedly see Tottenham get their money back on Richarlison having forked out £60million to sign him from Everton in 2022.
The new links to Richarlison are interesting given that Al-Ittihad – who wanted to sign Richarlison last summer – have reportedly pivoted to targeting Son instead.
Maybe Al-Ittihad are back in the hunt for Richarlison again, or perhaps one of their rivals are now interested.
Either way, that kind of money could be vital to Postecoglou’s own plans and he may well be faced with a difficult decision over whether to cash in or not.
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Saudi interest creates Tottenham dilemma
The simple fact is that Richarlison is Tottenham’s only proper number nine; a centre forward who can lead the line on his own.
Son has played well as a striker in patches of this season but he isn’t a natural striker like Richarlison.
In an ideal world, Tottenham would have two centre forwards and selling Richarlison would leave Postecoglou needing to find two strikers.
£60million would be a fine price for Richarlison, but finding strikers has been a problem for Tottenham in years gone by – never mind two in one window.
The money may just be too good to turn down for Tottenham, and the ball would then be in Richarlison’s court.
Richarlison has battled back from off-field issues this season and has actually admitted his excitement at the prospect of changes coming at Tottenham.
Richarlison may not be banking on being one of the players sacrificed to bring in new blood.
Sunday’s performance may have made Tottenham’s decision a little trickier but if Saudi money is on the table, Spurs would surely lean to accepting.
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