Tottenham Hotspur's Roberto De Zerbi wants Richarlison to stay at the club after the Brazilian scored a last-gasp winner against Chelsea in a pre-season friendly. The match, played at Sydney's Accor Stadium, saw Tottenham take a deserved lead on 17 minutes when Sandro Tonali scored his first goal for the club. However, Chelsea equalized just four minutes later through Estêvão Willian's header.
What happened?
The game took a dramatic turn in the second half, with both sides making a flurry of substitutions. Richarlison, who has been linked with a move away from Tottenham, settled the match in the 92nd minute, prodding the ball into an empty net after Jamie Donley's shot came back off a post.
Why it matters for Tottenham Hotspur
De Zerbi's comments suggest that the club is keen to retain Richarlison's services, despite the striker's uncertain future. The Brazilian has less than a year left on his contract and has struggled to find consistent form during his time in north London.
What comes next?
Tottenham Hotspur will now head into their new season, which is just around the corner. The club is currently 18th in the Premier League, with 30 points from 32 games. They have scored 40 goals and conceded 51, leaving them 40 points behind leaders Arsenal.
League standing (final 2025 table -- new season not yet under way): 18th in Premier League, 30 pts, 7W-9D-16L from 32 games, recent form LLDLL.
Goals this season: 40 scored, 51 conceded (-11 goal difference).
Title race: 40 points behind leaders Arsenal.
De Zerbi said that the sending off of Kevin Danso made the game harder for both sides. "It was worse for us and for Chelsea, because if you consider the condition of the pitch, very bad. And if you consider we are starting from two weeks, maybe less than three weeks, the second half you start the fatigue and playing, attacking against 10 players behind the line of the ball is tough for every team."
The match was played in front of over 80,000 fans at Sydney's Accor Stadium, with the atmosphere described as a true London derby. Conor Gallagher flew into a challenge on Dário Essugo after 10 minutes, picking up a yellow card and a fair few heckles from the largely Chelsea-supporting crowd.
De Zerbi's side were on top in the early stages and took a deserved lead on 17 minutes when the new signing Sandro Tonali scored his first goal for Tottenham. The midfielder's side-footed effort from outside the area took a deflection, wrong-footing the Chelsea goalkeeper Teddy Sharman-Lowe before nestling into the bottom corner.
Spurs were only ahead for four minutes, as Estêvão Willian got the better of Andy Robertson to head home at the back post after some good work from Jamie Gittens down the left. The game lost its competitive edge in the second half with both sides making a flurry of substitutions, before Richarlison settled it at the death.
Chelsea will now head to Hong Kong where they will be playing a series of friendly matches. De Zerbi's side will now head back to London, where they will prepare for their new season, which is just around the corner.
