Tottenham ace Richarlison earns deserved recognition amid ‘magnificent’ form
Tottenham striker Richarlison has turned his fortunes around in North London over the past couple of months.
Heading into December, very few Spurs supporters would have likely had many complaints if the Brazil international had been sold in January.
Fast forward two months, and suddenly the forward is undroppable and one of Ange Postecoglou’s key players at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. That is how quickly football can change.
His nine goals in eight Premier League games have certainly helped, and after scoring in his two league appearances in January, the 26-year-old has been nominated for the Premier League Player of the Month award for the first time since he arrived at the club (Premier League Official Website, 8 February).
After an incredible run of form, the former Everton man has a strong case to become just the fourth Brazillian to win the award, and it would be hard to argue against him.
Richarlison suddenly the main man at Tottenham
On the morning of 10 December, Richarlison had one Premier League goal to his name this season. That all changed when the forward grabbed a brace in the 4-1 win against Newcastle United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium that day.
From this moment, Richarlison hasn’t looked back and has begun to improve his overall game in addition to his efforts in front of goal.
This was evident in the 2-2 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday 14 January, where Richarlison completed 81 per cent of his passes and won both of his duels in the air as well as heading in a first-half equaliser for the visitors (Sofascore).
He followed this up by scoring the eventual matchwinner in a dramatic 3-2 victory over Brentford on Wednesday 31 January, and has since seen his form across these two matches recognised.
February picked up where January left off for the Brazilian as he scored two brilliant goals in front of his former supporters during a 2-2 draw with Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday 3 February.
His two strikes were enough to earn Spurs a point as well as himself a position in Alan Shearer’s Premier League Team of the Week (Premier League Official, 6 February).
Upon including Richarlison in his team, Shearer wrote, “After tucking away yet another close-range goal, he showed he can be clinical from further out too, with a magnificent finish outside the box.”
Those two goals took him to 10 in the Premier League for the season, just two behind Spurs captain Son Heung-min.
It is the first time Richarlison has hit double figures in a season for Spurs and he will now look to become the first Brazillian to win the Player of the Month award since Lucas Moura scooped the prize while playing for Spurs back in August 2018.
In other Tottenham news, a doctor has revealed that one Spurs loanee could be ruled out for a few weeks.
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