Antonio Cassano says Tottenham star is terrible after World Cup display

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Richarlison may have stolen the show in the opening round of World Cup games with his brace for Brazil, but that has not stopped Antonio Cassano telling Bobo TV (via Marca) that the Tottenham Hotspur striker is terrible.

Richarlison got the nod to lead the line for Selecao in their group-stage opener with Serbia. Of course, Tite’s men were dealing with the pressure of being the favourite for many ahead of the tournament.

They had trouble breaking the European side down, with the game still goalless with an hour gone.

Cassano says Richarlison is terrible

But Richarlison came to Brazil’s rescue, scoring twice to send the fans into a frenzy.

His first came after he reacted fastest to Vinicius Jr’s attempt being saved. But it was his second goal which will be remembered for years to come. Certainly, it is already a contender for the goal of the tournament.

Richarlison appears to do brilliantly to bring Vinicius Jr’s cross under control. And with the ball up in the air, the Spurs star unleashes a beautiful overhead kick, which finds the bottom corner.

It is a moment of sheer magic from Richarlison. But it seems that Cassano – who did not believe that he should have been in the squad ahead of Roberto Firmino in the first place – was not impressed.

Bizarrely, Cassano felt that Richarlison’s performance justified why he does not rate the Spurs striker.

“I am a person who never denies what he says, and after what I have seen I confirm that Richarlison is terrible,” he told Bobo TV (via Marca).

“The second goal? The reality is that he controlled the ball poorly and he scored that bicycle kick, while the other goal was an empty net.

“You can’t compare him to Brazil’s other strikers.”

Tottenham star has all the motivation he could need at World Cup

It seems such a strange take from Cassano. Of course, there is a debate to be had about which forward should start for Brazil.

But Richarlison deserves to be in the mix – as he proved against Serbia.

Only Neymar in the current squad has scored more goals for Brazil than Richarlison. Gabriel Jesus has also found the back of the net 19 times for his country. However, Richarlison has the much better strike-rate of the two North London-based forwards.

It appears that Cassano is going to have his view whatever Richarlison does in this tournament. But the Tottenham star can set his sights on making his opinion look even more foolish than it arguably already does.