Richarlison's Future at Spurs in Jeopardy as Trabzonspor Deal Stalls
Richarlison’s time at Tottenham is teetering on the brink, and the clock in Turkey is ticking loud enough for everyone to hear it.
Trabzonspor’s opening offer, around €20 million (£17m), landed on the Spurs desk late in the window and was swiftly turned away. Tottenham want closer to £35m. That gap has done more than stall negotiations – it has drained optimism from the Brazilian’s camp as the Turkish transfer window edges towards its September 4 deadline.
The pressure is not just financial. It is personal.
Salah, Fabinho and a Push Toward Turkey
According to ESPN Brazil, Mohamed Salah and Fabinho have both contacted Richarlison directly, urging him to embrace a move to the Super Lig. Two high-profile voices, both with experience of major transitions in their own careers, leaning on him to take the leap.
Richarlison, for his part, has made it clear he wants control of his next step. He has spoken publicly about deciding his own destination, and those close to him see Turkey as a genuine reset – a chance to step away from the stagnation and scrutiny that have defined his recent months in north London.
Yet every hour without progress hardens the mood. The rejection of Trabzonspor’s first bid has only deepened frustration. Inside his camp, belief that a deal can be rescued before the window shuts has started to fade.
Frozen Out by De Zerbi
On the pitch, the situation is even starker.
Roberto De Zerbi has drawn a clear line. After a proposed move to Everton collapsed, the head coach left Richarlison out of Tottenham’s Premier League squad altogether. No number, no role, no route back for now.
De Zerbi has ordered the Brazilian to train with the under-21s, a blunt signal that he sits entirely outside the first-team picture for this campaign. It is not a soft phase-out. It is an exile.
For a forward who arrived in England as one of the league’s most combative, emotional performers, the image is jarring: a senior international reduced to sessions with the academy group while the first team prepares for the season without him.
If the Trabzonspor move falls through, that becomes his reality for months.
Deadline, Dilemma, and a Narrow Escape Route
Trabzonspor know the stakes. To have any chance of landing Richarlison, they must move quickly and decisively, pushing towards Tottenham’s £35m valuation before the Turkish window shuts at 23:59 on September 4.
The equation is simple. Meet Spurs’ demands, and Richarlison gets the fresh start he craves. Fall short, and he remains frozen out in north London until January, his match sharpness eroding while others play their way into form and favour.
Should the Turkish route close, the Brazilian will have to look to other open markets, such as Saudi Arabia, or resign himself to a spell on the sidelines that could define – and damage – a key phase of his career.
Tottenham, for their part, are focused on bedding in a new frontline and moving on. De Zerbi has already made his choice. The club’s priority is to make this new attack work, with or without Richarlison.
The question now is whether someone, somewhere, moves fast enough to make sure “without” does not become the enduring headline of his Spurs story.
