Richarlison was involved in a funny social media exchange with Arsenal star Gabriel Magalhaes following Tottenham’s 1-0 win in the North London derby in Hong Kong.
Thomas Frank has certainly done his popularity among Spurs fans no harm by winning his first North London derby in charge, albeit a pre-season friendly.
As one would have expected, the team’s defensive shape was very different to what Tottenham fans were used to under Ange Postecoglou, with the Lilywhites proving near impossible to break down and allowing just one shot on target.
It was Richarlison who led the line for Tottenham as Dominic Solanke is still recovering from his injury, with the Brazilian playing 64 minutes before being replaced by Mathys Tel.
The Tottenham forward held up the ball impressively and held his own in a physical contest with Arsenal centre-backs Jakub Kiwior and William Saliba.
Richarlison was adjudged the Man of the Match, and he took to Instagram to post a picture of himself with the award and tagged his compatriot Gabriel Magalhaes.
However, the Brazilian centre-back bit back, posting a picture of the three Man of the Match awards he has previously received in North London derbies.
All signs point to Richarlison staying at Tottenham
The fact that the Brazilian forward got the nod to start over Mathys Tel suggests that Thomas Frank sees the former Everton man as his main back-up to Dominic Solanke.
Frank described Richarlison as a “good striker” two weeks ago, and then while speaking in Hong Kong, the Tottenham boss hinted that Spurs are likely to sign a wide-forward rather than a centre-forward.
All signs thus point to the 28-year-old remaining at Spurs this summer, despite the speculation linking Richarlison with an exit from N17.
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