The former Leeds forward has finally found his feet in Catalunya, meaning his market value is high for a club looking to raise funds
It was the kind of chance Raphinha would have missed a year ago. Pedri made it, playing a delightful dink over the Paris Saint-Germain backline, and the Brazilian gleefully converted it, watching the ball fall over his left shoulder before slicing a volley into the bottom corner. That strike - one that seemed to unlikely from this player just months ago - kick started Barcelona's comeback victory over PSG, and helped give the Spanish side the advantage in their Champions League quarter-final tie.
More broadly, last Wednesday at Parc des Princes was the realisation of a talent that had always been there, just waiting to be unlocked. Raphinha signed for Barca back in July 2022 at a cost of €59 million (£50m/$59m), but has spent the past 18 months battling to show his best.
Now, though, he has finally found a glimmer of form having carved out space in Xavi's line up, and is showing the kind of attacking quality Barca insisted they were buying. Alas, it might not last.
Raphinha is now faced with becoming the ultimate bargaining chip; a player who has just found his best, but whose performances have only dragged his price up ahead of what could now be a lucrative summer sale for his financially-crippled club.
When Barca signed
Club president Joan Laporta showed little hesitation in heaping praise on Raphinha when the Brazilian signed in 2022, telling Spanish media: "All of us who have lived through golden times at the club, there were always Brazilians. He takes the baton of illusion and magic. From the club, we think that the beautiful game is coming back. It's Xavi who has loved him, he has insisted a lot, and the club has done everything they could."
This was a mutual sort of attraction. Raphinha had offers from elsewhere - notably Arsenal and Chelsea - but spurned both to come to Camp Nou. And although Laporta's claims may have been lofty, there was enough about Raphinha's two seasons at Leeds United to breed excitement among the Blaugrana faithful.
The winger was a key part of Marcelo Bielsa's expansive side that earned admiration from the rest of English football in the 2020-21 campaign, as they finished in the top-half of the Premier League as a newly-promoted club. He was even better the following year, his attacking impetus and creativity proving crucial as Jesse Marsch's Leeds narrowly avoided relegation after a mid-season slump led to Bielsa being sacked. Leeds didn't want to lose their best player, but Raphinha wanted to leave, and Barca were willing to pay.
