Tottenham Hotspur forward Richarlison has criticised manager Antonio Conte following Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League last-16 exit, questioning the Italian’s decision to bench him.
The Brazilian however declared that the north London club has had a “shit” season.
Spurs were knocked out of Europe’s premier cup competition by AC Milan after failing to score in both legs as the Serie A club progressed 1-0 on aggregate.
Richarlison, who was signed by Spurs in the close season in a deal worth 60 million pounds (71.21 million dollars), has found game time hard to come by under Conte.
He played only the last 20 minutes against AC Milan in the 0-0 draw at home.
“I didn’t understand… I was playing well, we won against Chelsea and West Ham (United) and suddenly I was on the bench. I played five minutes against Wolves, asked the reason and no one told me why,” Richarlison said.
“On Tuesday they asked me to take a fitness test in the gym and told me I was going to start Wednesday if I passed it – and I was on the bench. There are things I can’t understand.
“There was no explanation again, let’s see what he (Conte) will tell us on Thursday but I’m not silly, I’m a professional that works hard every day and I want to play.”
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Richarlison netted three times for Brazil at the Qatar World Cup but has scored only two goals for Tottenham this season.
The 25-year-old has yet to open his account for the club in the English Premier League, where they are fourth.
He lamented Spurs’ insipid attack against AC Milan as they failed to test the Italian side, exiting the competition with a whimper.
This has left the club with nothing to play for this term, apart from securing a top-four finish.
“This season — and forgive my language — has been shit,” Richarlison said, adding his focus was now on getting into the starting line-up when Spurs host Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
“I’ll try to score as many goals as I can because the club has paid a lot of money for me and I haven’t given enough back on the pitch yet.
“Fair to say my injuries didn’t help and I haven’t had enough minutes.”