Richarlison has impressed many since moving to the English Premier League in 2017. He spent a season at Watford and then went to Everton. The 25-year-old spent four seasons at Goodison Park before moving to Tottenham Hotspur at the start of the 2022–2023 season. This was a breakthrough transfer in his career as he got a chance to play in Europe. However, things haven’t gone the way that he expected, and Richarlison has failed to make much of an impact. Injuries and limited gametime have also added to these struggles. We now look at some of the stats that show why the striker is struggling to make his mark for his new side.
Richarlison has appeared in 19 English Premier League games for Spurs this season. He has failed to register a goal for Tottenham Hotspur in the league but has three assists to his name. The above viz shows the percentile rank of the forward in comparison to other right-wingers in the league. The 25-year-old has only played 30% of the available minutes in the league for Tottenham Hotspur. By looking at the above viz, we can observe that Richarlison has a high percentile rank for winning defensive duels and contesting aerial duels. He is ranked average in the attacking department, and in the possession department, he is ranked poorly.
Struggles to find the back of the net
Richarlison featured in 30 league games for Everton last season and scored ten goals. He played as a left-winger and as a striker for the Toffees. The 25-year-old Brazilian created chances for a struggling Everton side and averaged 2.22 shots per 90 minutes with a 34.3% success rate. All the goals were scored from inside the penalty box, with the near post being Richarlison’s favourite target.
This season Richarlison has been used in different roles. He has featured as a number nine and as a winger on either flank. The rotation in the attacking line has not favoured the Brazilian. He averages 1.92 shots per 90 minutes and has a 38.9% accuracy rate. The numbers have decreased and the player has failed to find the back of the net.
Has creativity been affected?
Richarlison had four assists last season and three this season. Last season, he averaged 17.03 passes per 90 minutes and had a 66% accuracy rate. These included 1.39 passes to the final third and 1.26 to the opposition’s penalty box. Overall, he managed to provide 19 shot assists. This season, the average number of passes has risen to 23.01 per 90 minutes with a 77.3% accuracy rate. The number of passes to the final third has also risen to 2.13, and 1.7 passes have been attempted to the penalty box. Richarlison has ten shot assists in the current season. Spurs have more quality in the attack than what Richarlison had at Everton during his time there. This has allowed him to deliver dangerous passes to the opposition penalty box, and a few have resulted in goals.
The inconsistency on the field has forced Antonio Conte to play Richarlison in different positions. His preferred role is on the left side, the side from which he made the most box penetration carries last season. This season, Richarlison had to make adjustments and make penetration carries from different sides of the box.
Betting analysis
Richarlison is likely to have much of an impact on the teams’ odds. His exclusion means that Dejan Kulusevski will get game time. The Swedish has created more threats than Richarlison. As for the under/over goals, Richarlison’s inability to score goals means that the under lines might thrive.
Spurs spent heavily on this Brazilian forward in the summer. Things have not gone the way they expected and are now battling for a spot in the top four. Richarlison needs to show his potential and look to take his side to the next level. He needs to improve his game and stabilize his position in the front three. The 25-year-old will be hungry to score his first goals as a Tottenham Hotspur player in the English Premier League.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
