Top News

Carlo Ancelotti has moved to clarify his decision to include Richarlison in his Brazil squad for this month's friendlies against Senegal and Tunisia.

The Spurs frontman has struggled for form of late at club level and that's led to scrutiny back in his homeland where there is debate as to whether he should be involved in the national team set up.

Brazil are stacked with attacking options and many journalists feel Ancelotti is only selecting Richarlison because of the personal relationship they forged during their time together at Everton.

Brentford's Igor Thiago, who has seven goals this season including six in the Premier League, and Nottingham Forest's Igor Jesus, who has scored five in all competitions this season, were both notable omissions from Ancelotti's squad.

READ MORE: Tottenham duo walking PSG Champions League suspension tightrope vs Copenhagen

READ MORE: Tottenham predicted team vs Copenhagen - New injuries force three key Spurs players out of line-up

The legendary Italian boss said after selecting the 28-year-old: "We are evaluating with the technical staff the centre forward who has a different profile from those in this squad, for example, a different profile from Joao Pedro, Matheus Cunha or Vitor Roque, who like to play with the ball, they don't have the profile of a reference point in the area.

"Richarlison has the profile of a reference point in the area, Igor Jesus too. We are happy that he is doing well at Nottingham Forest.

"We are looking for a central striker with this profile. Richarlison isn't playing much right now, but as a centre forward he has scored many goals for the Brazilian national team."

Richarlison has not scored for Tottenham since the 2-2 draw at Brighton in September and he has also been in and out of Thomas Frank's starting XI.

Additionally, he only played a combined 26 minutes from the bench for Brazil in recent friendlies against South Korea and Japan, indicating he is already on the periphery of Ancelotti's squad.

The ex-Everton frontman has previously made it clear that despite transfer interest from Saudi Arabia, he wanted to remain at Spurs to maximise his chances of nailing down a starting berth for the Selecao at next summer's World Cup.

Brazilian journalist Lucas Musetti is one of several reporters that has criticised the player's recent call-up. Musetti said: "Within this list of various players I like, Richarlison bothers me the most because he had space and opportunity in this national team and didn't justify it. I think that Ancelotti knowing and trusting him alone can't be a justification for this call-up."

There is still time for Richarlison to justify his selection before the international break as Spurs play Copenhagen tonight before facing Manchester United on Saturday.

If Richarlison is booked against the Danish outfit, he will be suspended for Tottenham's crunch Champions League trip to PSG later this month.