Richarlison hits out at World Cup 'lie' as Tottenham star angrily responds

Tottenham Hotspur striker Richarlison has hit out at a social media post which has claimed that he will boycott the World Cup due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East

Tottenham Hotspur star Richarlison has hit out after social media claims that he would boycott the World Cup in America amid the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The Brazilian has slammed fake news going "too far" as he condemned world conflicts but rubbished claims that he would not be available for Brazil selection following the scenes in Iran and the Middle East. The Iran war is in its fourth day as the US and Israel attack while Tehran continues its retaliation strikes against allies and US bases around the Gulf.

North America plays host to the prestigious international tournament in the summer with the World Cup coming to America, Mexico and Canada for the 48-team competition which kicks off on June 11.

An account on X, formerly Twitter, posted a still image of a screenshot from Richarlison's Instagram page. The image is edited with a picture of World Cup and a quote, supposedly from Richarlison, that reads: "I won't play the World Cup until the fight is over."

The tweet claims that Richarlison says that he will refuse to play in the World Cup unless the war in Iran stops. However, the 28-year-old has been forced to speak out on the post, urging that it is deleted by the user and anyone who shared it.

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He said: "Just to be clear, because the fake news has gone too far: I never made that statement.

"Although I am against any kind of war and conflict, I never said I wouldn't play for the Brazilian national team at the World Cup.

"I hope everyone who shared this lie takes it back and deletes their posts."

The World Cup in America is already under scrutiny after protests broke out against United States President Donald Trump's mass deportation of immigrants last year.

There were further demonstrations following the fatal shootings of two US citizens by federal agents, this year. In Mexico, there was unrest after the killing of drug cartel leader 'El Mencho'.

Professional Footballers Association (PFA) chief Maheta Molango told Sky News that England players have mentioned in talks about how to deal with calls to take a moral stand, including from the media, in light of the scenes in Mexico, America and the Middle East.

He told Sky News: "We're talking about people who are smart, who are socially conscious, people who understand that they don't live in a bubble, people will really understand that they have a platform, that platform can be used to create a better world and to try to influence people.

"However, what some of them have told me is that they found it a little bit unfair that ultimately, for as much as they have a platform, why should they turn into spokespeople for governments or for governing bodies that in reality should be the ones taking the lead?

"I think some of them felt that in the past, and we've seen that, for example, in Qatar, some of them basically were hung out to dry.

"Because instead of having the government or having the governing body showing leadership on certain topics, all of a sudden the players were asked to become political spokespeople and that's not what they are. Those people are paid for delivering a show on the pitch."

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