You know we can’t go back… or can we?

The question is no longer whether Tottenham Hotspur are really in the relegation fight. The question now is: Are they actually going to have what it takes to stay up?

Thursday’s 3-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace surely marked a new nadir in Spurs’ worst Premier League season. 

Spurs sit just a point above the relegation zone, with Igor Tudor having lost all three of this games in charge.

It is spiralling out of control — the club is in a tailspin, and they need some heroes to step up.

Yet theirs is a squad full of players who are not used to the kind of pressure a relegation fight brings. This is a fanbase not accustomed to sleepless nights — to existential dread whenever you think of your football club.

Evertonians know it all too well. For the best part of three seasons, they lived and breathed it. Until David Moyes came back in January 2025, replacing Sean Dyche, it looked like the Toffees would have to go through the mire again.

But there is one player in that Spurs squad who does know what it’s like. Who does have that first-hand experience, and is built for the fight. Built to handle the pressure and carry the burden on his shoulders.

Richarlison, though, did not get on the pitch against Palace until the 74th minute. By that point, the race was up. Spurs had been down to 10 men since the 37th minute, when Micky van de Ven saw red for pulling back Ismaila Sarr in the penalty box.

By the time the interval arrived, Spurs were 3-1 down and beaten. 

Yet why was Richarlison having to settle for a substitute role to begin with?

Sure, he is working his way back from injury, but it was him who had provided the spark for Spurs against Fulham last weekend. He scored the goal to drag them back into the contest from 2-1 down, and pretty much single-handedly turned the match in their favour, even if they couldn’t find an equaliser.

Richarlison at Spurs is a curious case.

Beloved at Everton, for not just his quality, but his heart and desire, he had dragged the Toffees to safety in 2022. He had played through fatigue and injury. His £60M sale, which was for less than the club valued him at, was pushed through before the end of June in an attempt to save the club from a PSR breach: It was, of course, not enough.

Richarlison has left a void at Everton that has still not been replaced, yet he has never seemed to find that home at Spurs — that same love or affection.

It has not been because he has not scored, either. In his second season, he went on a brilliant run and finished with 12 goals. He only netted five last term, but is already on nine this season, having also added three assists.

Has Richarlison proved to be worth the £60M fee? There’s probably an argument to say no, but that is much less to do with him, and much more to do with the sorry state of Spurs, especially in the post-Harry Kane era.

But Tudor is absolutely making a mistake if he is not calling on Richarlison’s heart and desire in what is now a shootout with West Ham, Nottingham Forest and, possibly, Leeds United, to avoid relegation.

In the summer, whether Spurs stay up or not, it seems likely Richarlison will be moving on. He will have just a year left on his contract and Spurs will probably look to cash in. If they go down, they will not have a choice.

Richarlison will be 29 by the end of the season but, if he is on the market, then Everton should at least be open to looking to, for lack of a better term, ‘run it back’.

Thierno Barry should be viewed as Everton’s long-term project. He has probably played more often than initially planned, and he is certainly a work-in progress.

Beto is almost certain to be moved on, and Everton should be looking to sign two players capable of playing up front.

One of those should be, like Barry, on the younger side. It would not be a shock to see Everton broach the possibility of signing Liam Delap, for example, who Moyes held a great interest in prior to the striker’s move to Chelsea last summer.

But Everton also need some experience up top, and some versatility. It has been sorely lacking at times this season, and Richarlison brings both.

The finances involved would have to be right, and Everton clearly would rather invest any larger fees in younger players. But sometimes, it does make sense just to go with what you know, especially in a market that is not stacked with readily available talent that fits the bill for the club, team needs, and the manager.

The biggest concern with Richarlison is his injury record. And that could be a stumbling block, but if there is a deal there to be done, Everton must be looking to explore it. 

Richarlison has never stopped loving Everton, that much is clear, even if he does have an annoying habit of scoring against them (or assisting, as was the case in Spurs’ 3-0 win at Hill Dickinson Stadium back in October).

But football is meant to be enjoyed, and Richarlison plays with a joy and a spirit that just suits Everton.

For now, his focus will have to be on Spurs — who host Everton on the final day of the season. Yet one can’t help but think, the stars may just align for him to return soon enough, and play a key role in helping this squad move forward.

 

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