Tottenham forward Richarlison said former coach Antonio Conte shouted at him for around two hours in a team meeting.
Richarlison endured a difficult debut season at Spurs last season under Conte before the Italian was sacked by the club in March.
The Brazilian had criticized Conte after Tottenham’s Champions League last-16 exit before the latter responded and described the player as “selfish.”
Speaking to the Que Papinho podcast, Richarlison said he was wrong to criticize his coach so publicly and he accepted his punishment in front of his team-mates.
“Of course I made a fool of myself saying in interviews I needed time and whatnot, that was after being knocked out in the Champions League, but then I apologized to him,” Richarlison said as quoted by ESPN.
“I even told him that if he wants to punish me he can. We did it there, then I tried to run again, and another injury popped up. Like it or not, it ends up affecting the head too.”
“He has to show his firmness to the group as well, to say that he is there, that he is still in charge. This is his way of dealing with people, with the group, and he spent almost two hours just telling me.” meeting, in front of everyone [laughs].
“Then the players even said: ‘Richi, don’t do this again. Wait two hours’ [laughs]. Everyone wanted to leave, and we were there. Solved, all right.”
Antonio Conte signed Richarlison from Everton at the start of the 2022-23 season but he struggled with form and injury and was only able to score one Premier League goal for Spurs.
Following Antonio Conte’s sacking, the 26-year-old said he contacted the Italian to clear the air.
“After they sent him away I sent him a message,” Richarlison added. “I apologize because he was the one who asked me to be hired, and I couldn’t help him as much as he thought I could. The least I can do is apologize for what happened there.”
