Why Raphinha was never going to join Chelsea or Arsenal
FT Desk
- Updated: 26 Jul 2022 08:05 CDT
- 3 min read
New Barcelona signing Raphinha had plenty of transfer options before finally opting for Camp Nou, but there was only ever one destination in mind for the Brazil ace.
Raphinha completed a €65 million (£55m) switch in July and has wasted no time in showing his new club what he can do with a brilliant start to his career with the Blaugrana.
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Arsenal and Chelsea were also linked closely to the ex-Leeds United star, who proved a revelation at Elland Road following his move from Rennes in 2020.
According to Gunners technical director Edu, however, Raphinha was never interested in staying in the Premier League and had his heart set on joining the Spanish giants.
“People think we went in too deep about Raphinha, because Raphinha was everywhere," Edu explained to Sky Sports when asked about his side's pursuit of the winger.
“It's fair we did have some conversations with Deco because Deco is his agent and I have a good relationship [with him] - we are friends.
“I just said to Deco, 'Can you explain to me the situation with Raphinha?' and he was clear, 'Edu, we have a good relationship but I'm not going to lie to you, his idea is to go to Barcelona because he's dreaming to go to Barcelona, and we've been talking to Barcelona since a long time ago'.
“Okay, thank you very much, if something happens then just let me know because I can explore and understand the situation. If not, no problem and we carry on with our relationship.”
An immediate impact
Raphinha has now lined up twice for Barcelona in their pre-season preparations and has stood out on both occasions.
A debut strike in the 6-0 thrashing of Inter Miami last week was followed up by a spectacular goal to take down Real Madrid, the only goal of the friendly Clasico.
💥 BOOOOOOOOM!!!! GOAL BARÇA! RAPHINHA GETS THE FIRST! 0-1! #ELCLÁSICO 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/zDEdmbwEXu
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 24, 2022
That game also saw Robert Lewandowski wear the Barca shirt for the first time following his highly anticipated transfer from Bayern Munich, and bodes well for the Catalans as they look to reverse Madrid's Liga dominance over the coming season.
All eyes were on Raphinha, though, with coach Xavi delighted with the 25-year-old's early impact.
"You have already seen Raphinha show that he is capable of making a difference, very dynamic, he can play on both wings," he said after the game.
"And Robert is a world star. A world star who comes with tremendous humility, who comes to help us and who has adapted very quickly.
"The truth is, I am very happy with these two signings that at the same time give a lot of competition to the people at the top and thus we will all have to work even harder."
