Goal crisis & in drop zone - so why is Spurs' £60m striker stuck in U21s?

Less than four years after representing Brazil at the 2022 World Cup, Richarlison's downward spiral at Tottenham was laid bare as he scored in front of a couple of hundred supporters for the under-21s against Cheltenham Town in the EFL Trophy.

The Brazilian, who cost Spurs £60m from Everton and was rubbing shoulders with Neymar Jr and Vinicius Jr on international duty not so long ago, looked almost embarrassed to celebrate his thumping half-volley against the League Two outfit.

He also notched a penalty in a shootout that Spurs' reserves lost 7-6 after a 2-2 draw.

Richarlison, 29, was making only his second appearance of the season, and his first since the end of August against Brentford, having been left out of Tottenham's Premier League squad.

Manager Roberto de Zerbi insisted the decision to omit him from the club's 25-man squad in September was not his, following the forward's failed move back to Merseyside at the end of the transfer window.

With just three goals, Spurs are the top-flight's lowest scorers this season and second bottom in the table. So the decision to leave last season's 12-goal leading scorer out of their league plans looks increasingly difficult to justify.

For a couple of hours on transfer deadline day, it seemed only a matter of time before Richarlison left Tottenham.

He was closing in on an idyllic return to Everton, more than four years after swapping Merseyside for North London.

But after expressing his desire to depart, a proposed move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium fell through, leaving both the player and club with few alternatives at such a late stage of the summer transfer window.

"He decided everything alone," De Zerbi said in September. "He spoke with me at the beginning of the pre-season and told me his idea and desire was to leave.

"At the end we go to bring another striker [in] and, like I said at the beginning of the pre-season, I want to keep the players, just the players that want to stay and be proud and with the right passion to stay here.

"Then for everything and other problems, it is not my business and not my job. It is the responsibility of the club.

"I can't say nothing because I didn't decide anything. The message of Richarlison from the beginning of the season has been very clear. I accepted that and for me [there is] nothing [to say]."

Later that month, a proposed move to Brazilian side Vasco da Gama also fell through after Richarlison failed to agree personal terms.

He was also ruled out of Spurs' Carabao Cup tie against Liverpool last month, with only players registered in their club's respective league squad eligible to feature in the competition.

The ex-Watford forward may now have to get used to the surroundings of English football's lower leagues, with the EFL Trophy's group stage offering him a rare opportunity to gain competitive minutes before January.

Just six games into the new Premier League season, Tottenham may already be regretting their decision not to register Richarlison.

Since arriving from Everton, he has scored 27 top-flight goals in 103 appearances.

He was also Tottenham's leading scorer in the competition last season, netting 11 times in 32 appearances as they narrowly avoided relegation to the Championship.

Dominic Solanke's late equaliser against Manchester United on Saturday was the first Premier League goal from a Tottenham forward since Richarlison netted against Chelsea back in May.

Former England striker Alan Shearer questioned Solanke's quality on Match of the Day, describing him as "nowhere near good enough" - the 29-year-old has scored just 13 league goals since joining two years ago from Bournemouth in a £55m deal.

De Zerbi, though, was pleased with Solanke's performance and contribution after his first goal of the season rescued a point at Old Trafford despite Spurs being reduced to 10 men.

But despite the Italian's positive view and faith in his frontman, Tottenham's problems in the final third are difficult to ignore, having spent £300m on new recruits over the summer.

When they failed to score in their first four Premier League games this term, supporters inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were holding banners begging the 2025 Europa League winners to find the net.

Richarlison might not provide the answer to all of his side's problems, but his inclusion in the Premier League squad would surely have been more beneficial than allowing him to trudge around the pitches of England's lower-tier clubs and show his scoring prowess in front of sparse crowds.