(Video) Richarlison’s Post-Goal Behaviour Could End Up Hurting Liverpool in a Big Way

Whenever Richarlison lines up against Liverpool, drama rarely stays far behind. The Brazilian forward has built a reputation for finding himself at the centre of controversy in these fixtures — and Friday night in north London was no different.
Liverpool supporters will remember his infamous pigeon celebration at Anfield back in April 2023, when his last-gasp equaliser for Tottenham was quickly overshadowed by Diogo Jota’s dramatic winner seconds later. Jamie Carragher even couldn’t resist poking fun at Richarlison online after that episode.
Fast forward to tonight, and the Spurs attacker was once again thrust into the spotlight. Introduced from the bench with Tottenham two goals down and just ten minutes left on the clock, Richarlison wasted no time making an impact.
Moments after coming on, he capitalised on Liverpool’s failure to properly deal with a corner, reacting quickest to a loose ball inside the box to reduce the deficit and set up a tense finale.
Flashpoint Celebration Leaves Liverpool Paying the Price
Instead of sprinting back for the restart, Richarlison’s reaction after scoring sparked immediate controversy. With Hugo Ekitike still on the ground, the Spurs forward appeared to shove him around the neck before turning his attention to Dominik Szoboszlai, shouting aggressively in the midfielder’s face.
Despite not initiating the confrontation, Szoboszlai was shown a yellow card by referee John Brooks — a booking that turned out to be extremely costly. It was the Hungarian’s fifth caution of the Premier League campaign, triggering an automatic suspension that will rule him out of Liverpool’s clash with Wolves next weekend.
That ban comes at a difficult time for Arne Slot’s side. Mohamed Salah is currently away at the Africa Cup of Nations, while Cody Gakpo, Wataru Endo and Joe Gomez are already unavailable due to injury. There were further concerns on the night, with Conor Bradley picking up a knock before the break and Alexander Isak forced off after scoring the opener.
Unnecessary Provocation from a Familiar Antagonist
Richarlison’s strained relationship with Liverpool is well documented. Past remarks about Virgil van Dijk and questionable social media posts following the Reds’ Champions League final defeat in 2022 have already left a sour taste among supporters.
Even with that history, his actions after finding the net felt completely unnecessary. At a moment when Liverpool were under pressure, the Spurs forward chose confrontation over composure — a decision that indirectly punished Szoboszlai for an incident many will argue he had little involvement in.
Unsurprisingly, Richarlison also ended the night in the referee’s book for dissent at full-time, adding to the sense that his emotions once again boiled over.
Still, Liverpool had the final word. A hard-fought 2–1 victory ensured the Reds walked away with all three points, briefly lifting them into the Premier League’s top five — and leaving Richarlison’s latest antics to be remembered for all the wrong reasons.