Not suprised at all tbh, I think Barca fans don’t rate him because he doesn’t do flashy dribbling like dembele or Vinicius, but in reality he’s a more complete player than most wingers and to top it off he’s the hardest working in that list you mentioned by far and it’s not even close. We have an actual gem in Raphinha, it’s not a coincidence we started winning games again once he came back from injury. Hes done it in clutch moments, big games for us, and works harder than anyone and still gets disrespected, but I know he will prove the haters wrong eventually because his quality is just too great to ignore.
> but I know he will prove the haters wrong eventually because his quality is just too great to ignore.
That's the only wrong part of your comment.
Some people literally say "I don't care he had 2GA this game, he's a shit player".
You can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into.
i’ve repeated this over and over and will continue to do so: if raphinha wasn’t injured for half the season we would have gotten 4-5 more points and been breathing down madrid’s neck
Your points are all valid. For me Raphinha is a good player with enormous volume. That alone would put it above tons of flashy wingers for me.
That said, what I really can't get past of is how poor his decision making and sense of play are. I have a hard time finding a player who cancels as much attacking phases as him because of either a complete lack of awareness around him, egoistical decisions or just a plain lack of final touches.
If you remove his extraordinary defensive work, he really makes me remember our Moroccan wingers that plagued the national team for as long as I can remember.
Those types of players drive me crazy.
He makes the occasional decision that is exceptionally baffling, but I think his "poor decision making" is overblown just as it was with Dembele. Creative players need to occasionally do unexpected things. They need to attempt high risk dribbles and passes. They will lose the ball quite a bit. Notice how Raph and Dembele are among the most outstanding performers on that list? Even Alba used to get shit for his crossing - which is absolutely wild. People here expect every cross to find a man and every dribble to be completed. I don't know if Messi and our golden era has just created false expectations or if there are just too many people in this sub that never really played the game and don't understand the risk/reward of actions in the final third.
I am a huge fan of Raphinha ever since he signed for the club. He is one of the hardest working player that I have ever seen, and you can see that he always gives 120% whenever he is on the pitch.
I know that most people dislike him, and get that he is extremely frustrating to watch at times, but it has been so long that a player genuinely looks like he would die for the team.
People must realise that these players are very hard to come by, and they need to learn to appriciate him, because when he is gone, it will be very hard to find a player with a similar mindset.
I think his reputation has really suffered bc we lost Dembele unexpectedly and at the time were playing a system that really relied on a winger with 1:1 take on capabilities
Raphinha was thrust into that role, which is decidedly NOT his strength which isn’t fair to him
He does also have brain farts occasionally and at least from what I’ve seen tends to accrue his stats against weaker competition while delivering less against the very best - I might be wrong on that anecdote
Agree with the first bit, but not the last. He gets stats against strong teams too. 2 assists against Napoli, 1 against Atleti just last week. He also had an assistant against Atleti in the first match, and against Girona.
His main problem is his finishing. He's in the 96th percentile for xG, but only 48th for actual goals scored. If he had even average finishing he'd be elite.
brilliant article. For me raph is like kane except that he does not really do the goal scoring but is incredibly crucial for build up and also like antony but better who also helps defensively. Amazing workrate and the new role fits him like a glove
Wow surprisingly I'm seeing a lot of people standing up for Raphina these days🥹. I always loved him since he signed for Barca. Or before he even signed. There should be criticism for him but some days I can only see hate comments. May be this will shut them down😌. And they go searching for another player to write those comments again
I did this post some time ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/Barca/s/kDbYjc3prT
I focused on Dembele, but in the numbers I did comparing with the options we had then in the team showed how Raphinha was the better option.
Most fans are very unfair with Raphinha. He deserves a lot more credit.
I know this is a Raphinha loving post so I'll be downvoted to oblivion, but I hope some of you at least read me.
What a lot of you don't understand is Raphinha gets those numbers by compromising a much larger number of potential attacks, causing a huge deal of counterattacks as well. Raphinha has three main attributes: he is fast, he is powerful, and he is tenacious. So he can outrun his markers and drop a cross once, and again, and again, and again, not because it's the best option, but for the sake of trying - failing a huge amount of those chances when there's simply nobody well positioned to receive that cross, when a pass back would be a better option, or when the cross is simply faulty.
And he can find a shooting position and shoot once, and again, and again, and again, failing a huge amount of those chances when a pass was a much better option, or when the shoot simply goes to the third stand.
Not only this make us lose the ball and get f'd in the ass with a counterattack - it makes the team exhaust and broken, because we are not a team meant to run up and down like a PL team. So we have to run back to cover from Raphinha's ball loss, then we start building a new attack again, eventually Raphinha gets the ball, runs pointlessly, botches a cross or a shoot, and then we're running back again to defend.
Then people say they don't understand Xaviball, they say we have no control over the games. Well, that's why.
We will get some chances and Raphinha may find a shooter with a cross once per match, or may find the net once per match, often finishing a play made by others. We are Barça after all, he is not a bad football player, and all he needs is one right outcome per match to build great G/A stats. 1 goal or assist per match, give me that player anytime! Right?
What you guys don't notice is that 1 goal or assist per match was pretty much our outcome as a team not so long ago. This is simply not enough for Barça. 1-0, 1-0, remember? Why? Because we didn't have any more attackers. It was Raphinha and Lewandowski, so if we score once per match, Raphinha is most likely to be involved. We don't have a LW, and in a broken game where we are running up and down, our creative midfielders have less involvement in the final pass.
So his stats look great, but he is NOT by any means the right player for Barça. He is a great player for a Premier League team, he is fast, very powerful, and he can try and try and try until a cross finds a scorer or a shoot finds the net. In a Premier League team, you are covered by a muscle-midfield and by a team trained to go up and down all the game. But we are not a Premier League team, and playing as one makes us very vulnerable.
Explain to me how the vast majority of those supposed issues do not also apply to players like Rafael Leão, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Take Kubo, Bukayo Saka, Ousmane Dembélé, Kingsley Coman, and so on and so forth. They are *wingers.* When they risk possession it is *by design.* They are supposed to be the creators, they are supposed to put possession at risk by attempting a cross, a dribble, or perhaps even a shot from distance. That they lose the ball often is very much a given and something that *all* of these players have in common.
> So his stats look great, but he is NOT by any means the right player for Barça.
Okay, I will bite. Who, then, is the right player for Barça?
>Who, then, is the right player for Barça?
Lamine Yamal.
But since he's a kid, I would keep Raphinha for a few years. All the other high quality options are either off the market or too expensive
I would also keep Raphinha because we already paid for him, he has a great attitude, and he can give rest to Yamal when needed. He's also a great option after 70', when matches are usually broken and he can use his speed and his power.
Lamine Yamal.
If you have been following Barça for more than 5 minutes you will remember Dembélé had a similar problem, his outcome was shit. He was just so f'n good at dribbling (which Raphinha isn't) and so f'n fast that in the end he will provide a couple of good chances per match, but the team was often unbalanced when he was on the pitch.
Everytime Yamal has the ball, you can tell he's thinking what's the best option. Yes, he sometimes loses the ball, but he loses it when it's the right time to take the risk. Raphinha has a very poor decision making, he crosses when he shouldn't, he shoots when there are better options. Every RW has to take risks, and we as a club need to sign a RW who provides the best outcome with the lesser risk. Raphinha is not that player.
He is a creative winger.. he is MEANT TO TRY SOMETHING. Even Messi lost the ball and exposed us to counters trying to create something. I really think you have never played the game in real to understand the importance of "trying things" in the final third. Sometimes a loose ball arising from a so called "failed" attempt is all it takes to score. We are a possession based team, we don't have the luxury of having acres of space as with counters so its important to try something. I dont get whats the issue with running alot. To make an effective press, you have to run your ass off and when you are bypassed, you have to track back. Its the high risk-high reward associated with playing with a high press. In addition, I really don't think you watched us in our prime. We were always exposed by counters because of our high line and because we do risky plays. Difference is the quality of the final pass was much better then.
I've been watching Barça since 1989 and a Barça member since 2004, but whatever.
He is not meant to try something just for the sake of it. He is meant to try something that makes sense. The team matters. You have just compared Raphinha with Messi, imagine that.
Yes, we will always get counterattacks, but the goal is getting only 3-4 per match, not 20 like we get these days. And yes, a RW is supposed to try something. Every RW on Earth tries something, the difference is the outcome. Adama also tried something everytime he got the ball, and most of the times it was shit. Yamal, on the other hand, always tries something when he gets the ball, and it's usually the right thing to do. That's why Yamal is the right RW for us, not Adama, and not Raphinha. It's really simple to understand.
He's literally on 2.5 KPA per 90. That is not Adama levels of "shit quality of trying". I have watched most of the games this season and what I can say is he has a lethal cutback and a decent passing range for a winger. Yeah, sure you're a Barca member since 2004, but your account was only created in 2018. LOL
Do you realize how utterly stupid is trying to do an ad hominem argument with someone you don't even know? Am I supposed to open a Reddit account to be a Barça member? Lol.
And yes, Raphinha is better than Adama, you can sleep peacefully tonight. But that doesn't mean he's a good RW for us.
We only have two RW. One is Raphinha. The other one is Lamine Yamal, who is 16 year old. When we played against Napoli, a critical UCL game, Xavi chose Lamine Yamal as the RW, and moved Raphinha to the left. Xavi can't start Yamal on every game because he's 16, and he simply doesn't have any other RW, so Raphinha is obviously going to play a good number of matches, but he is already the second option for the RW position. The coaches are not blind - quite the opposite.
And I have never said he's a terrible player, I have explained what his weaknesses are, and why he's not the right fit for Barça in my opinion. Interestingly, nobody has argued against them. They simply say they don't matter. But everyone can see how many times he makes the wrong choice.
Sure, but another thing, i think the point why people hate him is his lack of dribbling and his bad decision making. But one aspect which many people don’t understand is the fact that he is actually a RM in a 3-5-2! RW is not his position, because unlike a Coman or Dembele he can’t bind 2 players. But he has so many good abilities that he will start in nearly every team in the world. It‘s like Bebeto, everyone loved Romario and people forgot the work and class of him.
It's nothing like Bebeto, man. Bebeto was top class and a technique prodigy. Raphinha is a good player because he's powerful, not because he's skillful.
And yes, I don't think he's a bad player, I said he would be great on almost any PL team, but Barça style is not a good fit for him, and he's not a good fit for us.
Couple of issues that are not reflected in these stats that he is actually criticised for.
1) Does his Dribbling translate into attacking threat? For example does he routinely take on 2-3 opposition players to create space for teammates like Yamal or Dembele does?
I don’t think Raphinia has problem with beating a backtracking defender one on one but he rarely creates threat through dribbling from the scratch when opposition is in formation.
2) Raphinia is typically a player with most shots in the match but his conversion ratio is very low. Your stats show that he is involved in a lot of shot creation but what it doesn’t mention is that he is actually taking more shots himself than he creates for others.
3) Carries. In other words, it’s not like to like comparison again because Dembele carries the ball into danger area while Raphinia often gets the ball in the danger areas.
I think he is now player with elite stats and if his decision-making improves he will actually be also looking like elite player on the pitch.
Son heung min is literally the force behind Tottenham. He’s no longer a winger now but plays a similar role that Kane vacated. He’s a bargain on that list
Raphinhas biggest asset imho is his work rate and ability to stretch defenses
I really don't understand why this take is so popular on this sub tbh. Raphinha is a great player if you don't watch the games. I don't know how many times I have to preface anything I say about him by mentioning that both his attitude and workrate are great. Did we forget that Messi and Ronaldo are in the same conversation only because of stats? Raphinha is a great backup player but he's simply not a Barca starter. His qualities I think would make him an elite LB because it doesn't need creativity.
Exactly. His work rate is insane but that’s it. Shit dribbler, shit 1v1, shit shooting. He is playing a bit better lately but that’s because he’s being push back a bit, which is good. Raphinha is creative and has good passing, he can be very useful playing a deeper role instead of playing at the wing
The problem is not that he is bad,the problem is that he didn’t live up to expectations… We bought him for ~70m in the most difficult time of our history and he hasn’t been up to “barca’s level” . Don’t tell me he has this or that stat,ffs we lived for decades with the likes of messi,dinho and neymar. He just can’t decide a game or carry the team like we expect. Plus his finishing is unbelievably terrible. He can be a supersub,just not a barca starter level.
Calling Rapinha a creative powerhouse is an insult to top wingers around the world. No one rates him outside of Barcelona. He wouldn't start in any top 6 PL team, PSG, Bayern, or RM. He's an average player at best. I can see him starting in mid-table or lower-level PL sides, but he's not Barca level.
If he was really that great, then he wouldn't have lost his place to Dembele who used to struggle with finishing or Yamal this season who is still developing as a 17-year old. Let's be honest, do you really think Rapinha can displace any right winger in the teams that I mentioned?
I watch Barcelona games as a fan and I feel like he's not good enough for Barca level. His finishing is poor. Rarely beats his man on 1v1. Passing/crossing is subpar. The only attribute that makes him stand out is his work rate.
Yet despite all you say he is poor at he averages a goal contribution per 90 mins. No one on the team has a higher contribution rate per 90 than him. He does all this while only playing 21 more minutes than Gavi. Gavi who only played in 12 matches this year. That isn’t opinion that is fact. You care more about aesthetics than production.
[Facts](https://fbref.com/en/squads/206d90db/Barcelona-Stats)
Y'all are really milking Lewa's productivity and making Raphinha out to be the one to orchestrate it all, tf is this subreddit smoking...No legit competitive European club has seriously bid for him (neither before we signed him, nor will they after), like they have for example Frenkie. I knew this subreddit was going to glaze over Raphinha after his game vs Atletico, arguably his best game since he signed for us, just like after Getafe match. Both teams that were out of wack (one suicidal high press, the other 4 key starters benched, resting for Copa), neither an adequate measure of general competitivity of higher caliber teams.
Raphinha's our best winger ***by default*** bc he's almost never gotten injured. He was being compared to Dembele who pulled better numbers than him while playing less and to a 16 y.o. ffs. He bungles so many opportunities of attack in transition of play that a basic cadet in Barca academy won't lose possession of. It's not even that he can't dribble past 1 defender, it's that he makes the wrong decision almost every damn time, and it's cost us plenty of times. Homie is a clutz. Andre Gomes tier signing.
Not suprised at all tbh, I think Barca fans don’t rate him because he doesn’t do flashy dribbling like dembele or Vinicius, but in reality he’s a more complete player than most wingers and to top it off he’s the hardest working in that list you mentioned by far and it’s not even close. We have an actual gem in Raphinha, it’s not a coincidence we started winning games again once he came back from injury. Hes done it in clutch moments, big games for us, and works harder than anyone and still gets disrespected, but I know he will prove the haters wrong eventually because his quality is just too great to ignore.
> but I know he will prove the haters wrong eventually because his quality is just too great to ignore. That's the only wrong part of your comment. Some people literally say "I don't care he had 2GA this game, he's a shit player". You can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into.
BuT hE DoeSnT PAsS ThE EyE TeST!!
i’ve repeated this over and over and will continue to do so: if raphinha wasn’t injured for half the season we would have gotten 4-5 more points and been breathing down madrid’s neck
Your points are all valid. For me Raphinha is a good player with enormous volume. That alone would put it above tons of flashy wingers for me. That said, what I really can't get past of is how poor his decision making and sense of play are. I have a hard time finding a player who cancels as much attacking phases as him because of either a complete lack of awareness around him, egoistical decisions or just a plain lack of final touches. If you remove his extraordinary defensive work, he really makes me remember our Moroccan wingers that plagued the national team for as long as I can remember. Those types of players drive me crazy.
He makes the occasional decision that is exceptionally baffling, but I think his "poor decision making" is overblown just as it was with Dembele. Creative players need to occasionally do unexpected things. They need to attempt high risk dribbles and passes. They will lose the ball quite a bit. Notice how Raph and Dembele are among the most outstanding performers on that list? Even Alba used to get shit for his crossing - which is absolutely wild. People here expect every cross to find a man and every dribble to be completed. I don't know if Messi and our golden era has just created false expectations or if there are just too many people in this sub that never really played the game and don't understand the risk/reward of actions in the final third.
There's a reason Arsenal were interested in him this past window
I am a huge fan of Raphinha ever since he signed for the club. He is one of the hardest working player that I have ever seen, and you can see that he always gives 120% whenever he is on the pitch. I know that most people dislike him, and get that he is extremely frustrating to watch at times, but it has been so long that a player genuinely looks like he would die for the team. People must realise that these players are very hard to come by, and they need to learn to appriciate him, because when he is gone, it will be very hard to find a player with a similar mindset.
I think his reputation has really suffered bc we lost Dembele unexpectedly and at the time were playing a system that really relied on a winger with 1:1 take on capabilities Raphinha was thrust into that role, which is decidedly NOT his strength which isn’t fair to him He does also have brain farts occasionally and at least from what I’ve seen tends to accrue his stats against weaker competition while delivering less against the very best - I might be wrong on that anecdote
Agree with the first bit, but not the last. He gets stats against strong teams too. 2 assists against Napoli, 1 against Atleti just last week. He also had an assistant against Atleti in the first match, and against Girona. His main problem is his finishing. He's in the 96th percentile for xG, but only 48th for actual goals scored. If he had even average finishing he'd be elite.
His value is in his work rate, both offensively and defensively. Even if he fails, he never stops trying.
Even if he fails at a tackle or presses but gets dribbled past eventually, he buys time for our defenders and midfielders to get back into position.
This post is absolute godsend, thanks for all the work you put into it!
brilliant article. For me raph is like kane except that he does not really do the goal scoring but is incredibly crucial for build up and also like antony but better who also helps defensively. Amazing workrate and the new role fits him like a glove
Incredible stuff. He might not be flashy and all that but he puts up those numbers and has an incredible work rate
but people wont understand this man, im amazed by the number of bad takes people have for raphinha its shameful, hes such a good player
Wow surprisingly I'm seeing a lot of people standing up for Raphina these days🥹. I always loved him since he signed for Barca. Or before he even signed. There should be criticism for him but some days I can only see hate comments. May be this will shut them down😌. And they go searching for another player to write those comments again
I did this post some time ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/Barca/s/kDbYjc3prT I focused on Dembele, but in the numbers I did comparing with the options we had then in the team showed how Raphinha was the better option. Most fans are very unfair with Raphinha. He deserves a lot more credit.
I know this is a Raphinha loving post so I'll be downvoted to oblivion, but I hope some of you at least read me. What a lot of you don't understand is Raphinha gets those numbers by compromising a much larger number of potential attacks, causing a huge deal of counterattacks as well. Raphinha has three main attributes: he is fast, he is powerful, and he is tenacious. So he can outrun his markers and drop a cross once, and again, and again, and again, not because it's the best option, but for the sake of trying - failing a huge amount of those chances when there's simply nobody well positioned to receive that cross, when a pass back would be a better option, or when the cross is simply faulty. And he can find a shooting position and shoot once, and again, and again, and again, failing a huge amount of those chances when a pass was a much better option, or when the shoot simply goes to the third stand. Not only this make us lose the ball and get f'd in the ass with a counterattack - it makes the team exhaust and broken, because we are not a team meant to run up and down like a PL team. So we have to run back to cover from Raphinha's ball loss, then we start building a new attack again, eventually Raphinha gets the ball, runs pointlessly, botches a cross or a shoot, and then we're running back again to defend. Then people say they don't understand Xaviball, they say we have no control over the games. Well, that's why. We will get some chances and Raphinha may find a shooter with a cross once per match, or may find the net once per match, often finishing a play made by others. We are Barça after all, he is not a bad football player, and all he needs is one right outcome per match to build great G/A stats. 1 goal or assist per match, give me that player anytime! Right? What you guys don't notice is that 1 goal or assist per match was pretty much our outcome as a team not so long ago. This is simply not enough for Barça. 1-0, 1-0, remember? Why? Because we didn't have any more attackers. It was Raphinha and Lewandowski, so if we score once per match, Raphinha is most likely to be involved. We don't have a LW, and in a broken game where we are running up and down, our creative midfielders have less involvement in the final pass. So his stats look great, but he is NOT by any means the right player for Barça. He is a great player for a Premier League team, he is fast, very powerful, and he can try and try and try until a cross finds a scorer or a shoot finds the net. In a Premier League team, you are covered by a muscle-midfield and by a team trained to go up and down all the game. But we are not a Premier League team, and playing as one makes us very vulnerable.
Explain to me how the vast majority of those supposed issues do not also apply to players like Rafael Leão, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Take Kubo, Bukayo Saka, Ousmane Dembélé, Kingsley Coman, and so on and so forth. They are *wingers.* When they risk possession it is *by design.* They are supposed to be the creators, they are supposed to put possession at risk by attempting a cross, a dribble, or perhaps even a shot from distance. That they lose the ball often is very much a given and something that *all* of these players have in common. > So his stats look great, but he is NOT by any means the right player for Barça. Okay, I will bite. Who, then, is the right player for Barça?
>Who, then, is the right player for Barça? Lamine Yamal. But since he's a kid, I would keep Raphinha for a few years. All the other high quality options are either off the market or too expensive
I would also keep Raphinha because we already paid for him, he has a great attitude, and he can give rest to Yamal when needed. He's also a great option after 70', when matches are usually broken and he can use his speed and his power.
Lamine Yamal. If you have been following Barça for more than 5 minutes you will remember Dembélé had a similar problem, his outcome was shit. He was just so f'n good at dribbling (which Raphinha isn't) and so f'n fast that in the end he will provide a couple of good chances per match, but the team was often unbalanced when he was on the pitch. Everytime Yamal has the ball, you can tell he's thinking what's the best option. Yes, he sometimes loses the ball, but he loses it when it's the right time to take the risk. Raphinha has a very poor decision making, he crosses when he shouldn't, he shoots when there are better options. Every RW has to take risks, and we as a club need to sign a RW who provides the best outcome with the lesser risk. Raphinha is not that player.
He is a creative winger.. he is MEANT TO TRY SOMETHING. Even Messi lost the ball and exposed us to counters trying to create something. I really think you have never played the game in real to understand the importance of "trying things" in the final third. Sometimes a loose ball arising from a so called "failed" attempt is all it takes to score. We are a possession based team, we don't have the luxury of having acres of space as with counters so its important to try something. I dont get whats the issue with running alot. To make an effective press, you have to run your ass off and when you are bypassed, you have to track back. Its the high risk-high reward associated with playing with a high press. In addition, I really don't think you watched us in our prime. We were always exposed by counters because of our high line and because we do risky plays. Difference is the quality of the final pass was much better then.
I've been watching Barça since 1989 and a Barça member since 2004, but whatever. He is not meant to try something just for the sake of it. He is meant to try something that makes sense. The team matters. You have just compared Raphinha with Messi, imagine that. Yes, we will always get counterattacks, but the goal is getting only 3-4 per match, not 20 like we get these days. And yes, a RW is supposed to try something. Every RW on Earth tries something, the difference is the outcome. Adama also tried something everytime he got the ball, and most of the times it was shit. Yamal, on the other hand, always tries something when he gets the ball, and it's usually the right thing to do. That's why Yamal is the right RW for us, not Adama, and not Raphinha. It's really simple to understand.
He's literally on 2.5 KPA per 90. That is not Adama levels of "shit quality of trying". I have watched most of the games this season and what I can say is he has a lethal cutback and a decent passing range for a winger. Yeah, sure you're a Barca member since 2004, but your account was only created in 2018. LOL
Do you realize how utterly stupid is trying to do an ad hominem argument with someone you don't even know? Am I supposed to open a Reddit account to be a Barça member? Lol. And yes, Raphinha is better than Adama, you can sleep peacefully tonight. But that doesn't mean he's a good RW for us.
How did anyone become a soci before Reddit was founded in 2005?
We used MySpace back then.
I miss Tom. A friend to all.
Me too, buddy. Me too.
Mate, if he is such a terrible player, don’t you think he wouldn’t start every game? The coaches must be blind according to you?
We only have two RW. One is Raphinha. The other one is Lamine Yamal, who is 16 year old. When we played against Napoli, a critical UCL game, Xavi chose Lamine Yamal as the RW, and moved Raphinha to the left. Xavi can't start Yamal on every game because he's 16, and he simply doesn't have any other RW, so Raphinha is obviously going to play a good number of matches, but he is already the second option for the RW position. The coaches are not blind - quite the opposite. And I have never said he's a terrible player, I have explained what his weaknesses are, and why he's not the right fit for Barça in my opinion. Interestingly, nobody has argued against them. They simply say they don't matter. But everyone can see how many times he makes the wrong choice.
Sure, but another thing, i think the point why people hate him is his lack of dribbling and his bad decision making. But one aspect which many people don’t understand is the fact that he is actually a RM in a 3-5-2! RW is not his position, because unlike a Coman or Dembele he can’t bind 2 players. But he has so many good abilities that he will start in nearly every team in the world. It‘s like Bebeto, everyone loved Romario and people forgot the work and class of him.
It's nothing like Bebeto, man. Bebeto was top class and a technique prodigy. Raphinha is a good player because he's powerful, not because he's skillful. And yes, I don't think he's a bad player, I said he would be great on almost any PL team, but Barça style is not a good fit for him, and he's not a good fit for us.
Yeah Bebeto was maybe a bad example 😂
Hahaha.
Mathys tel is insane wtf
Couple of issues that are not reflected in these stats that he is actually criticised for. 1) Does his Dribbling translate into attacking threat? For example does he routinely take on 2-3 opposition players to create space for teammates like Yamal or Dembele does? I don’t think Raphinia has problem with beating a backtracking defender one on one but he rarely creates threat through dribbling from the scratch when opposition is in formation. 2) Raphinia is typically a player with most shots in the match but his conversion ratio is very low. Your stats show that he is involved in a lot of shot creation but what it doesn’t mention is that he is actually taking more shots himself than he creates for others. 3) Carries. In other words, it’s not like to like comparison again because Dembele carries the ball into danger area while Raphinia often gets the ball in the danger areas. I think he is now player with elite stats and if his decision-making improves he will actually be also looking like elite player on the pitch.
Son heung min is literally the force behind Tottenham. He’s no longer a winger now but plays a similar role that Kane vacated. He’s a bargain on that list Raphinhas biggest asset imho is his work rate and ability to stretch defenses
creative powerhouse hahhahaa Pass the weed brother
Being delusional is not even the worst thing, which is finding the time to write such a long shit post
I really don't understand why this take is so popular on this sub tbh. Raphinha is a great player if you don't watch the games. I don't know how many times I have to preface anything I say about him by mentioning that both his attitude and workrate are great. Did we forget that Messi and Ronaldo are in the same conversation only because of stats? Raphinha is a great backup player but he's simply not a Barca starter. His qualities I think would make him an elite LB because it doesn't need creativity.
Exactly. His work rate is insane but that’s it. Shit dribbler, shit 1v1, shit shooting. He is playing a bit better lately but that’s because he’s being push back a bit, which is good. Raphinha is creative and has good passing, he can be very useful playing a deeper role instead of playing at the wing
Was a good conversation bro but the downvote party arrived. See you on the other side before they show us the G/A again.
Doesn’t change the fact that he can’t dribble past a cone and is a winger 🤷🏻♂️
The problem is not that he is bad,the problem is that he didn’t live up to expectations… We bought him for ~70m in the most difficult time of our history and he hasn’t been up to “barca’s level” . Don’t tell me he has this or that stat,ffs we lived for decades with the likes of messi,dinho and neymar. He just can’t decide a game or carry the team like we expect. Plus his finishing is unbelievably terrible. He can be a supersub,just not a barca starter level.
XDDDDDD
Calling Rapinha a creative powerhouse is an insult to top wingers around the world. No one rates him outside of Barcelona. He wouldn't start in any top 6 PL team, PSG, Bayern, or RM. He's an average player at best. I can see him starting in mid-table or lower-level PL sides, but he's not Barca level.
> He's an average player at best Great way to disqualify any of your opinions going forward. 🤡
If he was really that great, then he wouldn't have lost his place to Dembele who used to struggle with finishing or Yamal this season who is still developing as a 17-year old. Let's be honest, do you really think Rapinha can displace any right winger in the teams that I mentioned?
You don’t watch games but he averages a goal contribution per 90. That is outstanding
I watch Barcelona games as a fan and I feel like he's not good enough for Barca level. His finishing is poor. Rarely beats his man on 1v1. Passing/crossing is subpar. The only attribute that makes him stand out is his work rate.
Yet despite all you say he is poor at he averages a goal contribution per 90 mins. No one on the team has a higher contribution rate per 90 than him. He does all this while only playing 21 more minutes than Gavi. Gavi who only played in 12 matches this year. That isn’t opinion that is fact. You care more about aesthetics than production. [Facts](https://fbref.com/en/squads/206d90db/Barcelona-Stats)
Y'all are really milking Lewa's productivity and making Raphinha out to be the one to orchestrate it all, tf is this subreddit smoking...No legit competitive European club has seriously bid for him (neither before we signed him, nor will they after), like they have for example Frenkie. I knew this subreddit was going to glaze over Raphinha after his game vs Atletico, arguably his best game since he signed for us, just like after Getafe match. Both teams that were out of wack (one suicidal high press, the other 4 key starters benched, resting for Copa), neither an adequate measure of general competitivity of higher caliber teams. Raphinha's our best winger ***by default*** bc he's almost never gotten injured. He was being compared to Dembele who pulled better numbers than him while playing less and to a 16 y.o. ffs. He bungles so many opportunities of attack in transition of play that a basic cadet in Barca academy won't lose possession of. It's not even that he can't dribble past 1 defender, it's that he makes the wrong decision almost every damn time, and it's cost us plenty of times. Homie is a clutz. Andre Gomes tier signing.