Raphinha admits he ‘thought about’ leaving Barcelona

Raphinha admitted that he “thought about” leaving Barcelona amid a “complicated” period before he was linked to Manchester United & Al-Nassr.

Raphinha’s resurgence has been significant under Hansi Flick and the Brazilian is finally living up to the form that convinced Barcelona to pay a hefty £55m ($72m), with add-ons, to secure his services from Leeds United in 2022. He was in sensational form against Real Valladolid as he led the charge with three goals and two assists to inspire Barcelona to a 7-0 triumph in La Liga.

However, Raphinha’s journey in Spain has not been without its difficulties. He often struggled to find his rhythm in attack and had been pretty inconsistent which had put his future at the club in jeopardy. And the winger admitted in a candid interview with RAC1 that there was a time when he seriously considered leaving the club.

“Did I consider leaving? Yes,” Raphinha confessed. “The first six months were complicated for me and my family. After the World Cup, I improved and managed to finish the season well, but at the beginning, it was very challenging.

“My adaptation to the club was difficult. I knew it was something that had to happen, but not that it would be so difficult on a personal level. This moved my head a little, I sometimes thought about leaving. Not at the end of the season, but in the first half of the season. Barça is a huge club and it is normal for it to be difficult. I wasn’t used to that, but it happened quickly.”

As one of Barcelona’s most valuable assets, Raphinha has often been the subject of transfer speculation, particularly when it comes to potential moves to the Premier League or lucrative offers from Saudi Arabian clubs like Al-Nassr. The Brazilian, however, has expressed his frustration with the constant rumours and again asserted his commitment to staying at Barcelona.

“It’s annoying to see rumours, it’s normal,” he said. “I’m not active on social media, but my wife and friends do see it. Every day there’s a different piece of news, whether I’m going here or there, and that ends up bothering you. The first six months were very hard. I learned that in every transfer window, my name will be there. My head has always been here. Every season I think about doing more than the previous one and showing that I’m capable of being here for many years.”

With Barcelona enjoying a strong start to the new season, Raphinha is already setting his sights on achieving big things with the club. The Brazilian winger is not shy about his ambitions, stating that the minimum objective for Barcelona should be to win the Champions League.

“The minimum objective is to win,” he said. When asked if he was talking about the Champions League, he replied: “Of course. It has to be this one. Playing for Barca makes the main objective to win all the titles: the League, the Champions League, the Cup, the Super Cup… If you are in a club like this and you don’t set yourself that objective, you are in the wrong place.”

Raphinha will look to replicate his scorching form with the Brazilian national team when the Selecao will take on Ecuador and Paraguay in the next set of World Cup qualifiers during the upcoming international break. Bazil are sixth in the CONMEBOL standings and are in desperate need of some individual inspiration to climb up the table. After completing his international commitments, he will return to action with Barcelona on September 15 against Girona.

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