Ally McCoist puts forward Richarlison argument after latest Tottenham antics

Ally McCoist believes that Richarlison has sent a good message after his performance for Tottenham Hotspur's U21s on Tuesday.

The striker has been involved in the news at Spurs for all the wrong reasons so far this season, and is not in Roberto De Zerbi's plans.

The Italian head coach left the Brazilian out of Tottenham's 25-man squad for the season after he failed to get a move away from N17 before the transfer window slammed shut.

Richarlison approached FIFA over potentially ripping up his contract with the Lilywhites with just cause, claiming he feels they are preventing him from practising his profession.

The 29-year-old had an offer to rejoin Everton, but turned the move down due to financial reasons, also rejecting the chance to join Vasco da Gama.

With Richarlison unable to play for the first team, he featured for Tottenham's U21s against Cheltenham on Tuesday, as McCoist provides reaction to what he's learnt.

Ally McCoist bang on with Richarlison 'attitude' claim; the stats prove it

Richarlison played for Tottenham's U21s against Cheltenham in the Vertu Trophy, scoring in a 2-2 draw before the young Lilywhites lost 7-6 on penalties.

While speaking on talkSPORT, McCoist made a valid argument about Richarlison's attitude, who he believes he always tries his hardest for Spurs.

McCoist said: "I genuinely do think that when he does get on the pitch, he has the right attitude.

"He sometimes gets involved in things he probably shouldn't, but I would argue that when he does go on the pitch, if you're one of his teammates, you know he's with you all the way.

"Fair play to him, back playing and scoring; that's the kind of reaction that you would want."

It's a great point; Tottenham players knew they were in the trenches at the back end of last season, but they would have felt more comfortable having Richarlison alongside them.

The Lilywhites find themselves in another battle right now, and could do no worse with a soldier like him in the squad.

As per FotMob data, the ex-Brazil international made 6.76 defensive contributions per game last season in the Premier League, with 1.24 of them being tackles.

He won 6.39 duels per match at a success rate of 42.4 per cent, which is high among other players in his position.

To add to that, Richarlison finished as Spurs' top scorer with 11 goals, overperforming his xG by 3.02, and also providing four assists.

What did Richarlison do with fans after the game?

De Zerbi could do with somebody like Richarlison right now, and has made a mistake with the player for several glaring reasons.

The biggest area of concern for the Spurs boss right now is the lack of chance creation, as they ranks 19th in the Premier League for xG (6.60).

While Richarlison wouldn't necessarily create lots of chances, he would certainly have put himself in the areas to score, given he had 2.81 shots per 90, with 1.20 of them going on target last season.

As shared on X, he stayed behind for a reported 20 minutes after the defeat to Cheltenham to take photos with the Tottenham fans who had travelled to the match, even signing autographs.

Richarlison has since posted on his Instagram and just genuinely looks happy to be back playing football.