Tottenham: 5 things Antonio Conte has learned during preseason

1. Richarlison is the odd-man out upfront

Tottenham’s decision to spend big money on a player that wasn’t a clear member of their starting XI was a significant departure from the club’s prior operating procedure. That doesn’t mean the Richarlison purchase isn’t going to pay off handsomely for Spurs.

Some fans are going to be frustrated when the talented Brazilian starts the season on the bench. He’s worked hard during the preseason, but he hasn’t managed to gel alongside Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son in the same way Dejan Kulusevski did early in his tenure with the club.

That’s why the Kane-Son-Kulusevski trio is still a strong bet to be the starting group up front against Southampton. Expect Richarlison to play a part off the bench in almost all of his early matches, but it might take him time to work his way into Conte’s first-choice starting XI.

Richarlison’s biggest impact early for Tottenham will be giving Conte the license to rest his top attackers against opponents that aren’t at the top of the club’s priority list. He’s going to play a lot of football this season for his new team. He’s just going to start the year as the odd-man out upfront for Conte in the club’s biggest matches.