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Tottenham forward Richarlison tearfully admitted he fears the injury sustained in Saturday’s win over Everton could crush his dream of representing Brazil at the World Cup.
Richarlison was substituted early on in the second half of Spurs’ 2-0 Premier League victory against his former side Everton at Goodison Park with a calf injury.
The 25-year-old left the stadium on crutches and will undergo an MRI scan on Monday, but he has already been ruled out of Wednesday’s trip to Manchester United.
He missed a month of action last season with a similar injury and is now worried about a comparable lay-off, with Brazil facing Serbia in their tournament opener on November 24.
“It’s so close to the realisation of my dream,” he told ESPN Brasil with tears in his eyes. “I’ve already suffered a similar injury to this, but I hope it can heal as soon as possible.
“It’s hard to talk at this moment, but let’s see, I hope to recover. Monday, I have tests to do, but even walking hurts. Let’s wait. I have to stay positive if I want to go to Qatar.
“It’s all so close, it’s about a month to go, and we’ve been getting ready, working every day so that nothing serious can happen.
“Unfortunately, I had this calf injury, but now it’s just a matter of waiting, doing the treatment every day so that I can recover as soon as possible.”
Richarlison has scored just twice in 13 appearances since joining Tottenham from Everton, both of those goals coming against Marseille in the Champions League.
He has been capped 38 times for Brazil and has scored seven times in six appearances this year, making him a certainty to be named in the squad if fit.
Brazil boss Tite, spoiled for options in attack, has until November 14 to name his final 26-man squad – though most competing nations are expected to do so much before then.
Record five-time champions Brazil follow up their opener against Serbia with group games against Switzerland and Cameroon on November 28 and December 2 respectively.
