The move from the wing to the middle helped Ousmane Dembele assume his final form as an unstoppable force in the 2024-25 season and win the Ballon d’Or.
Barcelona eventually signed Gabriel Jesus as a rotational option for Hansi Flick’s squad, but the surprise solution has come from within, with Raphinha moving from his hybrid attacking midfielder-right wing role into the centre-forward position. Barcelona had spent the close season searching for a centre-forward after Robert Lewandowski left as a free agent for Major League Soccer, with Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez and Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martinez high on its list. The summer chase for Alvarez, which developed into a messy saga, ended in frustration for Barcelona, leaving the club short up front. He scored a perfect hat-trick, applying three different finishes. All of them would have made the game’s top No. 9s proud, for they showcased his skill, instinct, speed and sheer desire to score. Interestingly, for someone who has taken to the job like a duck to water, Raphinha wasn’t sure at the beginning. And then there’s the fact that you’re playing in the spot where the one and only Robert Lewandowski played. So if you don’t score goals, people judge you for that, they demand that from you. He needs just five more goals to equal the legendary Ronaldinho.
With his side down a goal to Sevilla after 19 minutes, Raphinha responded in style. The former Leeds United forward, who joined Barcelona in 2022, has now scored 89 goals in 185 appearances for the Blaugrana, which places him among the top 30 scorers in the club’s history. Tellingly, 69 of Raphinha’s Barcelona goals have come under Flick, who has led the Catalans to LaLiga titles in each of his two seasons.
“Because people judge you for goals, at the end of the day, you’re playing as a striker.
“Yes, I had doubts,” Raphinha told Rac+1 when asked about the transition. “I’ve always said it and I will always say it, he’s the manager that changed both my mentality within the club and also what I thought about myself,” Raphinha told DAZN . “I’m very grateful for him, and I will demonstrate it whenever I can.”
The second of those came in Barcelona’s biggest test of the season so far, at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan in the final league fixture before the international break.
It’s no surprise that the player wants to extend his stay at the club. “Given the way I’ve started the season, I think I can keep going for a few more years. I’m in spectacular physical shape so [retirement] is some way off.
“The idea was to bring in a forward with good movement and the ability to link up with others, and Julian [Alvarez] was one such player,” said Barcelona sporting director Deco. I would be very happy to extend my contract and, hopefully, finish my career here without having to go elsewhere,” Raphinha told RAC1 radio .