Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank showed faith in Richarlison and held onto the former Everton forward despite transfer rumors linking him with a move away from the club last summer. Now, a large part of the reason why Spurs kept Richarlison was the fact that they didn't really have any real offers for Richy, so selling him for pennies on the dollar would have been worse than rolling the dice on a talented Premier League striker at a rather questionable position for Spurs.
But by all accounts, Frank was very high on Richarlison and believed he could bring the best version of the Brazilian international back. It looked like he did, too, as Richarlison was a standout in the first few matches of the season, scoring goals and running like a madman.
Lately, though, Richarlison has fallen back to the depths of being a major transfer bust, and against Leeds United this past weekend, Frank made the bold call to play Mathys Tel at striker despite 1) left wing behind the young Frenchman's best fit and 2) Tel receiving arguably harsher criticism from the Tottenham fanbase for his performances.
Well, Tel answered the call successfully for Spurs on Saturday, scoring once and nearly twice in a strong all-around game at striker, carving out his own chances. Meanwhile, Wilson Odobert did just enough to potentially earn more looks on the left wing, though, of course, not at the expense of Tel if the two are in direct competition.
Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert won't be competing
But coming out of the October international break when familiar foes Aston Villa await them, Tel and Odobert likely won't be in direct competition for the Tottenham left wing job. Instead, Frank could very well go back to the well that yielded copious water on Saturday, starting Odobert on the left and Tel up the middle again, leaving Richarlison the bench.
Tel could be preferred over Richarlison at striker now by Frank, and although Tel's stay as the main No. 9 will be short-lived with Dominic Solanke and Randal Kolo Muani getting closer to returns from injury, it's more than reasonable for Frank to make the swap from Richarlison to Tel against Villa on Sunday, Oct. 19 in about two weeks.
Whereas Richarlison is nearing his last legs with Tottenham if he can't prove he's a more consistent striker option for the club, Tel is here to stay. He works hard for the team - even harder than Richy - and he ha so much future potential, especially when you look at his mentally of always bouncing back in the face of criticism. He's earned another start at striker if Richarlison is his only barrier.