Tottenham Hotspur summer recruit Richarlison faced racism while playing for his country Brazil in the international friendly match against Tunisia.
The Selecao players easily defeated the weaker team, Tunisia with 10 men, with a score of 5-1.
Raphinha scored twice in the match and Richarlison, Neymar and Pedro also joined him on the scoreboard.
But the on-field experience was not easy for the Samba players as they faced a lot of racism and Richarlison was one of their main targets.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Richarlison after facing racism
During the match, Richarlison scored the second goal in the 19th minute of the match. As he celebrated, Tunisian supporters threw bananas at him. This is a clear act of racism, and many big stars have criticized this activity with demands for stricter rules and punishments.
The 25-year-old was not aware of what happened in the match, but later expressed his thoughts. During post-match talks with Sky Sports, the Tottenham Hotspur striker said: “I think God didn’t let me watch that because I don’t know what I could have done in the heat of the moment. May this fan be identified and punished.”
He also spoke about how his compatriot Vinicius Jr. was racially abused in Spain. Richarlison also posted on his Twitter and criticized higher authorities for not punishing them properly.
Support from Ferdinand and Kane
After this incident, Rio Ferdinand also supported Richarlison and strongly criticized the football authorities. He said on his FIVE YouTube channel: “Football can play a good role in highlighting issues and sticking together, sticking together and sticking together to get authorities and powers to put things in place to protect people, but it’s not happening. It’s discouraging.
He also spoke about the Vinicius Jr incident. Richarlison also thanked the Manchester United legend in his Twitter post, writing: “Thank you for your support Rio!” He also agreed with Ferdinand’s opinion.
Tottenham Hotspur also showed their support for their player on Twitter and expressed their feeling of “disgust” at this incident. England Spurs superstar Harry Kane also spoke about it.
He spoke: “I have not seen [Richarlison] and had the opportunity to speak about the racism he suffered against Tunisia. I think FIFA has said they will investigate and find out what happened, but normally that kind of thing is unacceptable.”
Richarlison on “Professor Conte”
Richarlison hopes to appear in the North London derby for Tottenham Hotspur against Arsenal for the first time. He talked about how Antonio Conte changed his game.
The former Everton striker spoke to ESPN Brazil: “I’m on the right track. Of course, I still need to improve things, and Professor Conte will fix my mistakes there.” He also defended himself against criticism from Brazil pundits, adding: “Every time I come here I score goals.”
