RICHARLISON SCORES FOR TOTTENHAM UNDER-21S IN EFL TROPHY DEFEAT

Richarlison scored for Tottenham Hotspur's under-21 side in an EFL Trophy defeat at Cheltenham Town, in his first appearance for the club since being left out of first-team contention. George Miller gave the League Two side the lead before Richarlison equalised with a first-time finish from a right-wing cross. Miracle Adewole then put the young Tottenham side ahead in the group-stage tie, only for Miller to score deep into stoppage time and force a penalty shootout. Richarlison converted his own spot kick, but Cheltenham Town won the shootout 7-6.

The Brazil international has not been included in Tottenham's 25-man Premier League squad this season. His only senior appearance so far came in a 3-0 defeat at Brentford on the opening weekend of the season in August. Potential moves away from the club, to Everton and to Vasco da Gama, both collapsed during the summer transfer window, according to reports. His outing for the under-21s marked a rare appearance since being excluded from the first-team picture.

The fixture formed part of a wider round of EFL Trophy group matches involving academy sides from Premier League and EFL clubs. Elsewhere, Chelsea's under-21s beat League One side Reading 2-0, with Chizaram Ezenwata scoring twice before half-time. Notts County beat Nottingham Forest's under-21s 5-1, Oldham Athletic came from behind to beat Leeds United's under-21s 4-2, and Gillingham held on to beat Brighton's under-21s 4-3 after leading 4-0. Fulham's under-21s lost 3-2 at Walsall despite a second-half comeback attempt. Whether Richarlison returns to first-team contention at Tottenham has not been confirmed.