14 March 2023 , 14:08
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Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has discussed Tottenham forward Richarlison for the first time since the pair sparked an on-pitch brawl back in January.
The Gunners shot-stopper was celebrating his side's 2-0 victory just as the full-time whistle had been blown during the most recent North London derby. Richarlison clearly took issue with something he saw and confronted Ramsdale, appearing to slap him in the face and in turn causing a melee between both sets of players.
Things boiled over to such a degree that Ramsdale was actually kicked in the back by a Spurs fan who had made his way from his seat to the edge of the advertising hoarding to boot the England international. This only made things worse, though Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta eventually managed to get hold of his players and guide them to the away end.
Nearly two months later, Ramsdale has openly discussed Richarlison when asked to rank the biggest wind-up merchants he has faced in his career so far.
Speaking to ESPN, the 24-year-old burst into laughter once the Spurs' star's name had been mentioned and asked the presenter: "Why are you laughing? What's funny?"
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Ramsdale went on to discuss the Brazilian, adding: "He knows how to get under people's skin and sometimes it's to his advantage and sometimes it's not.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Is Richarlison one of the Premier League's biggest wind-up merchants? Comment below
Richarlison clashed with Aaron Ramsdale last time Arsenal met Spurs"It can either bite you in the bum or work in your favour and I think there have been times when it has worked in his favour so yeah, I think he is a wind-up merchant."
In the aftermath of their bust-up, Richarlison told reporters that Ramsdale was disrespectful and that was the reason behind his fury at full-time, while insisting he did not fear any repercussions for his actions.
"What I really didn’t like was their goalkeeper [Ramsdale]. He was celebrating in front of our fans, that’s a disrespect to our fans. He should have celebrated with their fans.
"Punishment nothing," he added. "People know that we tried to do our best, but you have to respect other teams. He lacked respect there, and I went there to call him up on it."
To the surprise of many, Richarlison did actually manage to evade punishment despite his altercation with Ramsdale.
It was a different story for the fan who kicked the Arsenal ace, who was handed a 12-month community order and made to pay £100 in compensation to the goalkeeper.