Real Madrid vs Barcelona: How Raphinha went from disposable to indispensable under Flick
The stand out performers for Spain over the summer were wing pairing Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal. The success of the duo at Euro 2024 wasn’t lost on Barcelona. Indeed, their number one target in their bid to strengthen in attack was to reunite the pair at club level. Williams had an affordable release clause – reports suggested a €50m bid would be enough to trigger said clause – yet Barcelona being Barcelona… it wasn’t quite so simple.
Premier League interest in Williams also threatened to end their pursuit of the Spaniard, who ultimately remained with Copa Del Rey holders Athletic Club, putting pen to paper on a new deal at the beginning of August. While that may do little but delay Barcelona’s interest in Williams for 12 months, they needn’t have worried at the failure to land the 22-year-old.
Ahead of the weekend’s La Liga action, Barcelona sit top. They make the testing trip to fierce rivals Real Madrid, three points clear of Los Blancos heading into El Clasico. To say the Blaugrana are the league’s great entertainers would be a huge understatement. Hansi Flick’s side lead La Liga having scored more goals (33) than any other team in Spain’s top tier. The defence has been far from watertight – 10 goals conceded is two more than 16th placed Getafe – and it’s their frontline that has drawn widespread praise.
With a WhoScored rating of 8.16, Yamal is the best rated player in La Liga. Teammate Raphinha (7.99) is second. It could have been so different for the Brazilian, too. Barcelona’s pursuit of Williams meant it was feasible to suggest that Raphinha would be up for grabs this summer. Following his arrival from Leeds in 2022, the 27-year-old has flattered to deceive.
That’s not to say Raphinha has put up poor numbers – in his two full league seasons in Spain, he’s scored 13 and provided an additional 16 assists, directly contributing to a goal every 119.3 minutes – but that the winger struggled to match the sky-high expectations in Catalonia.
Flick’s appointment, though, has unleashed Raphinha. With five goals and five assists, he’s well on course to enjoy his most prolific La Liga campaign to date. Factor in his four goals and one assist in the Champions League, which includes a hat-trick in a 4-1 mauling of Bayern Munich in a match winning display in midweek, and as captain too, and it’s been an absolute whirlwind few months for the Brazil international.
He tops the creative metrics in La Liga having made more key passes (36) and created more clear-cut goalscoring chances (13) in the division, while his partnership with goal-machine Robert Lewandowski has been crucial in Barca’s goal haul, and the Pole’s push for the Pichichi. After all, three of the five assists Raphinha has registered this season have come for Lewandowski, marking the best assist-to-goalscorer combination in the division.
"The confidence I feel from the manager is very important to explain my good form," Raphinha said prior to the Bayern game, and this confidence means he is very much a winger reborn. Flick’s faith in the player, who had been up for grabs the previous two summers, means Raphinha is able to play to his full potential without the fear of being hooked. Last season, he started 17 league matches and was subbed off in 12 of those.
This season, he has played the full 90 in all but two of 10 league games. One of those was against Osasuna last month, a game in which he came on as a second half sub. The other was against Sevilla last week, where he was withdrawn in the 66th minute with Barcelona 3-0 up and with one eye on the welcome of Bayern Munich.
Fans and the player can be confident that Raphinha won’t receive similar treatment in El Clasico this weekend. Saturday’s trip to the capital is yet another huge test for Flick to overcome. Real Madrid have won every game at the Bernabeu this season, and it’s a record that will be put to the test this weekend. As Balon d’Or favourite Vinicius Junior looks to reinforce his credentials for the individual accolade, days after he himself scored a Champions League hat-trick, it’s compatriot Raphinha that has been drawing the adulation from supporters and pundits alike.
Yamal may be the poster boy for Barcelona’s future, one littered with young stars such as Pedri, Fermin Lopez and the returning Gavi to name three, and the teenager’s form is a key reason to the Blaugrana’s rise to top spot this season. However, the story of the season so far has been Raphinha’s transformation. Another star player display, at the Bernabeu no less, will complete his U-turn from disposable to indispensable.
