Pair Giba Perez, Gustavo Garcia and Marcello Neves — Rio de Janeiro
Hoping to bring Richarlison home, Fluminense have contacted Tottenham but are yet to receive a response from the British club to begin negotiations regarding the player. The Tricolor is awaiting a position from the English team to proceed with the agreement.
Marcello Neves provides an update on Fluminense’s interest in Richarlison in the Central do Mercado.
The end of the year marks the start of plans to try and get Richarlison back, who is currently at Tottenham and was a regular member of Brazil’s last squad. The 27-year-old striker is considered the main target for the Club World Cup in 2025. Fluminense has already made contact with the athlete and is ready to invest in his acquisition from Tottenham. The club is counting on the player’s identification with the team, as well as his desire to return to the selection, as major assets for the negotiation.
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For the moment, the biggest challenge lies in obtaining a release from Tottenham. The club paid 50 million pounds for the striker in 2022 (around R$315 million at the time), plus possible future bonuses of 10 million pounds. He is under contract until June 2027 with the London club.
People close to the player believe that a return at this time is quite difficult. He hopes to have the opportunity to play when he returns from injury at the end of December, and coach Ange Postecoglou has already indicated that he is enjoying his football.
Richarlison — Photo : Dylan Martinez/Reuters
However, Richarlison lost his place in Tottenham’s squad this season due to injuries. He has only played seven matches so far, including five in the Premier League, one in the Europa League and one in the English League Cup. He only started one of those matches, totaling 173 minutes on the pitch.
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Currently, an asset for Fluminense is the value the player could acquire if he shines again in Brazil. If he excels in Brazilian football, Richarlison could become more visible for potential selections. The initial idea is to acquire the player in the form of a paid loan with an option to buy. Fluminense is ready to invest for the player, aware that the cost is high, but will not take the risk of compromising the club’s finances.
A complicating factor in trading is the exchange rate. Given that it is an English club, the currency used as a reference is the pound sterling, which is currently valued at R$7.64, higher than the euro and the dollar.
Fluminense’s long-held wish
In June this year, hours before Thiago Silva’s presentation at the Maracanã, Fluminense president Mário Bittencourt expressed his dream of signing Richarlison. Now interest is growing.
– If all this helps, with the gods of football, the great Tricolors who are with us in spirit, if everything helps, there are two players who would be a dream. Our Pombo, Richarlison, if he wishes, the doors are open. And another one who didn’t play here, but who I admire as a player, who is a player that everyone would like to have, is Neymar. If one day we get the chance, who knows… Richarlison has played here and knows the joy the fans can bring – he said.
Mário Bittencourt expresses his dream of having Richarlison at Fluminense.
In 2017, Fluminense sold Richarlison for 12.5 million euros (around R$46 million) to Watford in England. Previously, it was acquired for R$10 million from América-MG.
Richarlison played for Fluminense for two seasons, between 2016 and 2017. In total, the striker scored 19 goals in 67 matches for the Laranjeiras club.
