Raphinha Follows Ronaldinho

DBasia.news – Barcelona signed Raphinha as one of the most sought-after players in this transfer market. He was in European football in 2016 and in 2022 he has the chance to become a world class star.

Raphinha arrives in LaLiga after playing two seasons as one of the Premier League’s brightest stars. Having established himself as a Leeds United star, he has capitalized on his talent and pace in one of the toughest leagues in the world, scoring 17 goals and providing 12 assists in 67 appearances in England.

He is a winger who can play on both flanks, is left-footed, and his main quality is dribbling. Raphinha is a very fast player, with great acceleration and the ability to change direction quickly to outwit defenders, and find attacking situations advantageous. This abundance of resources makes him a unique player who can create opportunities for his team.

Raphinha is also able to complete those moves in various ways, either by assisting a team-mate or by scoring goals for himself, which demonstrates his versatility.

7 of the 17 goals he has scored for Leeds have come from outside the box, something Barcelona have not had since Lionel Messi’s departure.

There has been a lot of discussion regarding the importance of the coach he had in his growth as a player. Brazil coach Tite openly expressed his gratitude to former Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa, “for the support and training program for Raphinha that brought him closer to the national team”, something the player himself also pointed out: “Bielsa knows how to bring out the best in every player. It helps us to raise our level”.

This approach to the national team has been matched by good performances for La Canarinha. He has scored 3 goals and provided 2 assists in 7 official games for Brazil, has also been one of Brazil’s key players in the final stages of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, as well as starting 11 games against the likes of Argentina, Colombia and Uruguay, although there is great competition for his position.

His nickname with the suffix “inha” immediately took us back to the Brazilian national team and FC Barcelona at the turn of the century. Ronaldinho made history, winning the Ballon d’Or in 2005, and winning the second Champions League in the club’s history.

Raphinha repeatedly emphasized that Ronaldinho was his childhood idol. “If I can do half of what Ronaldinho did in the big games, that would be a great achievement,” Raphinha said a few months ago.

What is already a fact is that Raphinha will be available to Xavi Hernandez at the start of the 2022-2023 season. He is a different type of player to expand his attacking options, and will provide dribbling, assists and goals from either side of the Blaugrana’s flanks.

His versatility will allow Raphinha to join up with the likes of Ferran Torres, Ousmane Dembele, Ansu Fati, Memphis Depay and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Plus, his ability to attract defenders will make it easier for his teammates to find space. In addition, Raphinha is a quality player to be the recipient of a pass from the Blaugrana midfielders, who can provide options for short or wide passes.