There continues to be a lot of stuff swirling around Emerson Royal leaving Tottenham Hotspur this summer. AC Milan is the club most closely linked with a move for the Brazilian right back; Royal has reportedly agreed personal terms with Milan as far back as last May, and the clubs have been involved in prolonged negotiations around a transfer fee in the region of €20m. Thus far, there has been no agreement (but a lot of suggestions that one will likely come soon).
That said, we really haven’t heard much from Emerson Royal himself... until now. Royal gave an interview with Brazilian outlet EPTV (as reported by Rede Globo) where he talks in frank but honest terms about his place in the Tottenham side, and why he’s angling for a move. In short — he just wants to play football.
“I’ve always been clear. Every player wants to play. I’m very competitive. It bothers me to stay on the bench. I was upset and told this to the coach. But I have always been very professional.
“I have always been one of those who put more intensity in training, but this situation for me does not work, so I do not know what my future will be. I am not a player [who’s happy] to stay on the bench. I want to play. If it’s not here, I get it. But let me go to a place where I play.
“[The club and I] are talking. I want to play in the Brazilian national team, play in a World Cup. In the last few years I’ve always been called up, with Tite, with Diniz. But I understand that those who do not play for their club hardly play in the national team. So I have to look for new club or, if I stay at Tottenham, have a good proposal to play. Let’s see what’s best for me and also everywhere.”
I honestly don’t have any issue with anything Royal says here. None of his comments are out of line, he’s not slamming the club or Ange Postecoglou or his teammates ahead of him. He’s refreshingly honest about his motivations — he’s desperate for a World Cup place with Brazil, but doesn’t see a path forward for him at Spurs, so he just wants to move to a place where he can play football. That’s fair. That’s all any professional athlete wants, and he’s been more than a model pro for Spurs since his arrival despite a bunch of unfair backlash.
And he also revealed a special relationship with his countryman Richarlison, revealing that he was the person who convinced Richy to seek professional counseling when Richy was dealing with depression a couple of seasons ago. Richarlison has spoken on numerous occasions about how he sought professional mental health and how it changed his life, and it seems like Emerson was the one who gave him the push to get started.
“‘Pombo’ is very special. He is a very good guy, with a huge heart. Over the last year, we have come very close. He had problems with [his home life] and was feeling bad, he isolated himself from everyone, did not want to talk to anyone. I was one of the people who managed to help him. I did psychological counseling, and it helped me a lot. I improved as a person. I told him the experience and told him to try the same. We had lunch and dinner together. I took him out of the house. Being alone in this situation is very bad. It’s clear he’s someone else now. It is a great joy to see Pombo like this today.
“How many people in the world have depression and suffer from it? And if nobody talks, they won’t know how to get out of it. We are important to society. People have to understand that this is not a crazy thing. I had this fear when my parents advised me to seek help, but when I broke this barrier, I saw how important it is to have follow-up. If you do not have a good mind, you will not have a good body either. Hugging saves a depression.”
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again — Emerson Royal is an incredible guy and a fantastic footballer, but he just wasn’t an incredible footballer for Tottenham at this point and time. He clearly needs to leave the club to play somewhere else so that he can realize his dreams and ambitions within the sport. Likewise, Spurs need an upgrade at his position that fits Postecoglou’s tactical system better than Emerson does. All of these things are true.
But I’ll never dislike him. It’s clear that he’s a beloved figure in the Tottenham changing room, and hearing him speak about his relationship to Richarlison and how he helped his friend is heartwarming. I suspect that with the benefit of time we’ll look back at Emerson as a cult hero during the early Postecoglou years at Spurs — a flawed player but loveable person who added to the team culture in ways that will continue to resonate for years to come.