**Richarlison’s increasingly strange situation at Tottenham has taken another turn just two weeks after his proposed return to Everton collapsed.**
[Everton](https://readeverton.com/) came close to bringing the Brazilian back to Merseyside during the closing stages of the summer transfer window, with a £35m deal discussed before the move broke down.
Richarlison subsequently remained at Spurs but was left out of their 25-man Premier League squad, meaning he cannot play in the competition before January. The Carabao Cup offered another possible route back onto the pitch.
Apparently not.
Richarlison remains eligible for domestic cup competitions and Tottenham travel to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night. But Roberto De Zerbi has confirmed the former Everton forward will not be involved, despite Spurs having failed to score in any of their opening four Premier League games.
“The situation is the same,” De Zerbi said when asked about Richarlison.
The Spurs boss also revealed that he had spoken to the 29-year-old several times in an attempt to persuade him to stay. “At the start of this season I spoke to him many times to convince him to stay, and he didn’t want to. I can’t go every day to pray for him to stay.”
That leaves Richarlison in an extraordinary position.
His proposed Everton return fell through before the English transfer deadline, and a subsequent move to Vasco da Gama also failed to materialise. He remains a Tottenham player but cannot play in the Premier League and, despite being eligible for the Carabao Cup, is not being selected there either.
Whether Everton would have any interest in reopening the door in January is another matter entirely. David Moyes’ priorities could look very different by then, and there is no suggestion at this stage that another approach is planned. But Everton were sufficiently interested to discuss bringing Richarlison back only a fortnight ago.
For now, one of their former favourites remains at Tottenham, available to play in the Carabao Cup but unwanted even as Spurs struggle desperately for goals.
It is a situation Evertonians will continue to watch.
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