Arsenal had €70m Raphinha bid rejected by Barcelona

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 23 May 2023 09:09 CDT
• 9 min read

Arsenal tried to sign Raphinha from Barcelona during the January transfer window, a report from Spain claims.

The Gunners made three additions to their squad in January, including left winger Leandro Trossard, who arrived from Brighton for €24 million, but they notably missed out on Mykhailo Mudryk, who instead completed a transfer to Chelsea.

Sport reports, though, that Arsenal had been in the market for Brazil international winger Raphinha, who they had also tried to sign in the summer from Leeds.

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Indeed, the Spanish paper states that Mikel Arteta’s side were even willing to pay €70 million for the 26-year-old, who only joined Barca for €58m in the summer, plus the possibility of another €7m in bonuses.

Raphinha had initially made a slow start at Camp Nou, scoring just two goals in all competitions prior to the World Cup.

Since the international break, though, the 26-year-old has risen in stature. He has found the net five times in all competitions and has also created five goals in comparison to the four assists he made in the first part of the campaign.

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How good has Raphinha been for Barcelona?

Indeed, so strong have Raphinha’s performances been, he has kept up-and-coming talent Ansu Fati out of the squad, leading to rumours that the young Spain international could potentially depart in the summer.

Barcelona’s stance in fielding Raphinha ahead of the youngster is backed by data analytics experts SciSports, whose model shows that the winger’s performances have been among the best in La Liga this season.

He is given an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €48m, signifying a significant rise from the €24.5m he was valued at in February 2022.

Meanwhile, Ousmane Dembele’s future at the club is not yet secure because of a release fee in his contract that means he can leave for as little as €50m in the summer.

Little wonder, then, that Barcelona are eager to keep their options open on this front.