Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal given Raphinha boost over 'hopes and dreams' comment
Robin Bairner
- 8 Jul 2022 08:20 BST
- 3 min read
Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal are all clubs seeking a transfer for Leeds United winger Raphinha this summer, and the trio have been boosted by comments that Elland Road boss Jesse Marsch has made over the player’s next move.
Raphinha’s future has been making football transfer news headlines for months, with links to Barca and the Blues dating back months.
Both of these clubs have had their issues in getting deals over the line, though. Barcelona have been working through financial issues while Chelsea have been taken over. Nevertheless, their interest in the 25-year-old Brazil international remains.
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Comments made by Marsch on Thursday suggest that Raphinha has aspirations of joining a leading club and playing European football.
“We just have to wait and see what happens in the next couple of days,” Marsch said over the player, admitted that he does not know if Raphinha will travel with the squad for pre-season.
“I know he has hopes and dreams. I know he loves this team and this club and he loves being here. We'll see how things progress day by day.
“There's urgency from his end, I think, to come up with a solution. We have to in the next couple of days see how things stand and see how we go.
“It hasn't been an easy time for him this summer. Things have come and gone and there have been a lot of little discussions. Right now he's our player.
“He showed up today and trained with everybody, he had such a good attitude.
"We had a very open and honest conversation about while he's here he's part of us, and then we'll see what happens. It's still a long way to go in the transfer window."
What next for Raphinha?
Marsch talked about the “urgency” that Raphinha feels to have his future decided, but that could be complicated given Barcelona’s situation, which still needs to be resolved to allow them to make big transfers.
Certainly, after losing Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City on a relatively cheap fee, Leeds will not be willing to part with their offensive diamond readily.
Arsenal have already spent big this summer and their interest in Raphinha has cooled in recent times, while Chelsea are closing in on a deal for Raheem Sterling, leaving the Leeds man without an obvious destination in the near future.
