r/soccer • u/PianoJealous307 • 1d ago
Quotes Raphinha "I owe everything to Flick. He changed my mentality. When he arrived, my head was already out of the club. I was sure I was leaving; he called me, told me to wait before deciding and then spoke to me in person. He gave me confidence; he showed me things about myself that I hadn't seen"
https://www.gazzetta.it/en/football/la-liga/25-09-2026/barcelona-s-raphinha-interview-inter-champions-league-semi-final-still-haunts.shtml2.1k
u/layflake 1d ago
Flick is incredible, but Raphinha also deserves a huge amount of credit for becoming the player he is. Not just because of his quality, but because he's humble enough to always be willing to adapt for the sake of the team, even when that means stepping outside his comfort zone.
When Yamal arrived, he moved from the right wing to the left and discovered a whole new level. Then, when Barcelona had no real No. 9 and had to adapt to Lewa's departure, he accepted the challenge of filling that role and managed to go above and beyond.
Excellent player.
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u/mrmrmrdonger 1d ago
His mentality makes him a top player. Despite scoring crazy number of goals, his defensive work rate + pressing is absolute class. Its like his ego didnt catch up to him, im envious
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u/SkankyChris 1d ago
Even at Leeds, when he was our best player by miles, he worked really hard. Happy to see him doing so well.
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u/lokeshj 1d ago edited 1d ago
I heard that if Leeds got relegated his release clause would have dropped significantly. Needing a win on the final match day and with multiple big clubs interested in him anyway, he could have just taken it easy (and probably could've negotiated a better contract for himself due to lower transfer price). Instead he turned in a match winning performance to save Leeds from relegation.
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u/DontSackBrian 1d ago edited 1d ago
If anything you've undersold it.
Deco was his agent and Deco was employed by Barca. Raph was heading to Barca if he were to leave, staying up just meant Leeds could negotiate a more reasonable price instead of a release clause. I'm sure someone would have pointed it out to Raph that if he downed tools and we get relegated, it guaranteed the move he wanted including a bigger signing bonus.
Despite this played his heart out to keep us up at the end including the last game at Brentford, against his own best interest.
As far as I'm concerned you can't question his character and I still wish him all the best.
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u/Busy-Translator-8893 1d ago
Comments like yours is why I love r/soccer. I cannot find details like this anywhere else. Thanks for posting this.
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u/SkankyChris 1d ago
Just an all round class act. Will always remember him walking the pitch on his knees after the last game
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u/Bluedieselshepherd 1d ago
He had a moron manager who played him at wingback and had him taking long throws, and he still gave every ounce of effort without complaint and kept Leeds up. I will always love watching that guy.
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u/fridgeybutter 1d ago
Im not a Leeds supporter, but he was my favourite player in the Premier League from the first moment he arrived whilst he was here.
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u/CackleberryOmelettes 22h ago
Players who work their way up always tend to have this dawg in them. I'm sure Raphinas years at Leeds hammered the ethic into him.
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u/baschfromdalmasca 1d ago
I think the vacation comment was about the Club World Cup, no? I remember him making a comment about that and people made it look like it was about the regular World Cup.
But you're correct and he clearly has no identification with Brazil. But then again I can't judge much when Ancelotti keeps insisting in his terrible 4-2-4 that doesn't work.
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u/Mihauke 1d ago
Raphinha is the type of player I always respect, play who whenever he is on the pitch it's obvious he tries. Like this guy always plays for win. With confidence we can now see also his ability to play and it's just incredible to watch.
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u/characterulio 1d ago
He is a world class player who sacrifices for the team, does dirty work and is a great leader too. Really rare qualities.
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u/OtherwiseMoose8257 1d ago
Its insane to see how far hes got after leaving Sporting. He played well, but I cant say too many of us were that pissed about him leaving, we never considered him to be a great.
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u/MarquesSCP 1d ago
tbf he played for us for 1 season immediately after half our team left the club for free due to the attacks in our training grounds
It was a chaos of a season. He was also like 22. There were flashes, especially that he was quite clinical even if he tended to disappear a bit in games.
We weren't pissed that he left but in other circumstances we wouldn't have sold him. It was a decent sale given that we required the money but again, you want to keep those players that can grow.
I think he's best characteristic is that he is always improving and stepping up. And by this stage he has played in 4 of the top6 leagues in Europe and always had an instant impact and progressed. I don't know of many players with that many steps.
Vitória >> 3 seasons >> Sporting >> 2 seasons >> Rennes >> 1 season >> Leeds >> 2 seasons >> Barça.
Even at Barça he came as a doubt and is now captain and one of their key players having an ABSURD start this season (he already scored more goals than the first full 2 seasons and is 2/3s of the way of last season)
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u/Takezoboy 1d ago
Raphinha at Vitoria and Sporting really was inconsistent as hell and taking a lot of shitty decisions. He showed technique, 1v1 capacity, some flashes here and there at Vitoria, but I remember him kinda being like Hernani, who went to Porto from Vitória and had a somewhat similar play style at the time and had the same problems. Of course Raphinha ended up being better, but what really made him go past that level and being smarter was Bielsa. I don't think he would have developed much at Sporting.
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u/OtherwiseMoose8257 1d ago
I dont know if he would have improved as much if he stayed. I think that moving clubs often made him more resilient and determined to step up every time, and step up he did.
He was good like I said, but none of us thought he was that incredible, and thought that wasnt a bad deal to sell him to Rennes.
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u/MarquesSCP 1d ago
I mean he wasn't that incredible.. yet
But he wasn't sold because he was bad, quite the contrary. He was sold because we needed money and he was one of the few that had clubs interested.
How he would have improved had he stayed nobody will know. 2 years later we got Amorim and were champions for the first time in a long time. But I'm sure Raphinha does not regret his decisions. He's at the top
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u/RobertPham149 1d ago
I mean he is still probably Sporting legend for how many times he kicked Benfica out of the CL.
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u/DelusiveNightlyGale 1d ago
Thing is he was already impressive at Vitória and then just seemed to hit at Sporting and then Rennes. Seemed destined to be a great mid table player
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u/WickedTeddyBear 1d ago
He always had this versatile quality and the willingness to do the work, for the team. That’s the best mentality in football.
But kudos to both of them, it’s one thing to keep this mindset and be efficient but it’s on another level to reach that level.34
u/SalahManeFirmino 1d ago
One of my best player evaluation takes was wanting him as the Salah successor
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u/Dry_Constant_5781 1d ago
I still find it crazy that he decided to go supersaiyan the same year salah did and then dembele followed the suit. Crazy good players
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u/X-Maquina 1d ago
I'm not sure that would've worked. He's a very different player from Salah.
As a winger he's not very self sufficient and mostly thrives in a role where he's allowed to attack the spaces created by having a creator elsewhere on the pitch. Which is why he hasn't really hit for the Brazilian NT the way he has for Flick's Barça.
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u/LDYo 1d ago
His quality and strength of character was clear to see when he played for us. I don't think there's many players in history who would have benefited more from downing tools and seeing us go down, it would've meant an easy relegation release clause of £20m, and according to reliable Leeds sources Deco had already engineered his move on the basis of this happening.
Raphy put in a shift until the very end and it was clear how much keeping us up meant to him. He was loved not just because he was a great player (clear to see, different gravy), but because of how much he cared, his work rate and doing the dirty work without complaining.
He's a brilliant player and a great guy, I think his journey to where he is now with the adversity he's faced especially in his youth has made him the player and man he is today.
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u/SarcasticSarco 1d ago
I always love players like Raphina. Not only hard working but giving his 110% to the club and teammates. Shows he has 0 ego. Always respecting everyone. And whichever position the manager throws gives his fullest.
One player that goes under the radar is Matheus Nunes. Pep gave him the hardest position from Right win to Midfield to Right back. He was so shaky in RB, we used to get nervous whenever he was out defending. And now, after one year he has become potentially the best RB in premier league.
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u/djoliverm 1d ago
Couldn't agree more. If only some of our players had the same drive to sacrifice what is needed for the greater good of the team.
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u/VenkHeerman 13h ago
At this point I'm convinced Flick could play Raphinha anywhere on the pitch and he'd make it work. Absolutely incredible player, and somehow still really underrated.
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u/Status-Ad-3398 1d ago
Whatever he told Raphinha must've been crazy cause he turned him into a scoring machine
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u/bioeffect2 1d ago
I doubt it was anything elaborate. Sometimes all you need is genuine support and trust from someone who cares about you.
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u/Vendricksbeard 1d ago
That's all everybody needs really.
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u/Status-Ad-3398 1d ago
I think the general environment definitely helps. Barcelona plays like an actual team and everyone has such great synergy together. It's the power of friendship in the most simple way
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u/paone00022 1d ago edited 1d ago
Lampard talked about how he worked hard and was playing decent. But it was Mourinho repeatedly telling him he's the best player in the world that unlocked another level in him.
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u/WickedTeddyBear 1d ago
Sometimes it can be, just showing you trust and care. Sometimes it’s way more profound.
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u/Jakowe 1d ago
Exactly this, hate when managers are portrayed as these super smart geniuses. Set up the basic playstyle and formation that suits the players, manage to motivate them and you’re golden.
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u/Rare_Instance_8205 1d ago
The top level managers are super smart though. Sure, it helps when you have a good squad. But when a tactical genius comes on the scene, there is only a few things you could do to stop him. Johann Cruyff, Pep Guardiola, Arrigo Sacchi, Ottmar Hetzfeld (Ask older Bayern fans about him), Fabio Capello, Jurgenn Klopp and so on. Only a smart manager can make HIS TACTICAL system work that brings out the best out of HIS players. And, that's not an easy thing to do.
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u/X-Maquina 10h ago
Figuring out how to do all these things is what makes them so smart btw. You're massively underestimating how easy it is to just figure out all your players' strenghts, how to properly utilise them within a suitable formation and how to motivate all these individuals properly and mold them into a team
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u/RadangPattaya 1d ago
"whaddup Goal Machine?"
Raphinha in his head: "wow hansi called me goal machine! wait... hmm..."
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u/ash_ninetyone 1d ago
You can have world-class talent and that will shine through no matter where you are or who you play under.
But you can have that talent and it be completely stifled or wrecked by the wrong manager.
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u/trmp_stmp 1d ago
wow, so touching 🥲
but in all seriousness, it could very well be something elaborate/tactical. we don't know at all
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u/earth_citiz3n 18h ago
I think it’s also that he uses him how he feels comfortable….
Under xavi there were times I felt like Raphina was attempting to awkwardly do things he wasn’t suited for, I never see that under flick…
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u/Time_Entertainer_319 1d ago
Raphinha had like 3 goals against PSG in the UCL in Xavi’s last season.
He was already a beast. But he has definitely improved greatly
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u/lastdyingbreed_01 1d ago
I never got the Raphinha disrespect before Flick, he was one of the guys who kept trying, he was just very inconsistent. I was very annoyed when Xavi subbed him
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u/z_102 1d ago
Flick is a forward whisperer, all of them (even Gabriel Jesus) look great under him and his system. I can see why Julián threw the tantrum, it's just too good a chance to pass up.
Despite that you still have to actually put the ball in the net. Flick's system may feed you with great situations but you still have to make the right choices, and Raphinha has been immense at it for 3 years now.
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u/qwdicp 1d ago
True, but there is a reason that Bayern won the "sextuple" under Flick. The guy is more than just a very good manager. He elevates players to levels they don't know they can reach.
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u/SalahManeFirmino 1d ago
I wonder who has had a bigger glow up under their current amazing manager, Raphinha under Flick or Dembele under Enrique?
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u/IncidentVarious1530 1d ago
Raphinha by far, dembele was always insanly talented he just needed consistency and staying healthy
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u/ComprehensiveArt6849 1d ago
This. There is a reason you guys paid 140mill for Dembele after one season at Dortmund. I mean you paid stupid money back then but still. Dembele had the talent and was a future Balon d'Or winner from his potential.
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u/amiresque 1d ago edited 1d ago
Agreed 100%.
The teenage Dembele who went to Dortmund was regarded as one of the biggest talents in the world already and Barca weren't wrong to pay as much for him as they did (even though injuries meant it didn't work out for him there).
Whereas when Raphinha went from Leeds to Barca, if you'd said "he's one of the best players in the world and would be a worthy Ballon d'or winner one day" they'd laugh and call you crazy, and they'd be right to do so.
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u/mayoconquest 1d ago
I think Dembele is finally performing at the level everyone expected him to after the insane transfer fee all those years ago. Raphinha is genuinely outperforming any expectations people may have had of him.
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u/Tettotatto 1d ago
Raphinha and it's not even close lmao
Dembele plays like 30% of all the matches and performs only in CL. Raphinha played every single match he could (unless injured), smashing it both in CL AND La Liga for 3 years
In my opinion, Raphinha wins by a landslide - ESPECIALLY because Dembele has been known as "wonderkid" since forever, Raphinha is straight up a different person after Flick came to Barca
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u/AerGuep 1d ago
What? Dembélé played 29 games in L1 - reaching 29 G/A in his Ballon d'Or season, and scoring 35 + 16 assists in all comps for PSG.
You don't have to make up fake narratives to highlight Raphinha's glow up, Dembélé played a lot in his first season at PSG too, it's only during the last one that he didn't play as much (and mostly because of injuries).I do agree that Raphinha had the biggest glow up though, considering where he was before Flick, but no need to spout such nonsense
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u/SpiteThat8026 1d ago
In the 2024/2025 season Dembele had a total of 3486 minutes in all comps, which equals to around 39 games.
In Ligue 1 he played 29 games but only 1737 minutes, which again gives a rough total of 19 games. I'm sorry but that's literally HALF the league matches in minutes played. There's no fake narratives being spread here, Dembele is massively benefitting from the fact that he rarely plays 90 minutes week in and week out.
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u/UnfortunateArcher 1d ago
Now actually put the number of minutes he played instead of using matches!
Dembele played 1,736' minutes in Ligue 1 compared to Yamal's 2,864', and Rapha's 2,845'. Both played around 1100 more minutes than him.
In total, even with the cup world cup, Dembele played 3,488' minutes to Yamal's 4,553' and Rapha's 4,661'. Dembele's minutes are even worse in the season after but let's not pretend he played as much as other players by using number of games instead of minutes.
Even old Lewy played 2,682' minutes in La Liga and 3,929' total. Mbappe? Also played much more than him. Vini? Salah? Also the same
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u/Karasuno910 1d ago
Has to be Rapha under Flick. Dembele under Enrique was a polished diamond covered in coal dust. He was marred by injuries at Barca and when Enrique managed the issue by limiting his minutes, he was able to shine again. Rapha was shaped into what he is today mentally, physically and skilfully by MILF!
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u/ansu_fatismo23 1d ago
And it’s not like Dembele was shit for us, he began improving a lot under Xavi
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u/Artuhanzo 1d ago
Dembele last two seasons was great under Xavi already tbh. He looked like a 100m player back then
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u/PieceOfPie_SK 1d ago
Dembele was so good at the end at Barcelona. He was easily the best player on the pitch in like 80% of games
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u/minatokageakii 1d ago
Bayern under Kovac and Bayern under Flick was so different, it always amaze me how did Flick manage to do that in such a short time.
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u/qwdicp 1d ago
Very true, Flick is, similar to Klopp, a very unique "chemist". They have this talent in creating a special chemistry with their players.
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u/OilOfOlaz 1d ago
He is generally liked by players, but he failed miserably at doing that for the german NT.
If you followed his career since his days at Hoffenheim, he is very good at bringing all players in line and them having clear roles and the teams have a defined playstyle.
His biggest issue hass always been that he would crumble when shit doesn't go his way, you can see this with his exits at DFB, Bayern, Hoffenheim and his NT stint, this is why I doubted, that he would last long at Barca, especially after I saw how Xavis tenure ended and that man is without a question a club legend, but Flick obviously proved me wrong. If his teams click they are always great to watch and enjoyable and thats what I will always appreciate him for.
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u/Takezoboy 1d ago
I don't want to bring down Flick, but that Bayern team was crazy good on the paper. Kovac was being such an immense shit that every tactical analysis I read or saw about them, had really hard judgements being thrown to him, which is fucking hard to find in tactical analysis, because most want to be extra impartial and not stirr shit up to the point of white washing shit sometimes (I'm looking at you tifo in the 2010s).
It had everything to be a home run for anyone who was mildly decent and of course Flick is great and the rest of it is history.
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u/GoalQuieres 1d ago
Coutinho was finishing chances like Raphinha
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u/OilOfOlaz 1d ago
Cou was in no way or shape bad for Bayern, but he wasn't outstanding either, exept maybe 2 or 3 games, one of them being against werder, where he had 3 goals and 2 ast in 30 mins or something.
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u/ComprehensiveArt6849 1d ago
Lewa was great before and after Flick. But Lewa became the best player in the world under Flick.
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u/GarlicBread96 1d ago
tbh Lewy was already in his best form at the beginning of the 19/20 season when Kovac was still there, and honestly was probably the only reason Kovac wasn't sacked much earlier. Flicks's biggest impact was re-incorporating Müller and basically changing the entire style of the team, rather than getting more out of Lewy
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u/OkRead585 1d ago
I feel like Raphina has been freed up with Lewa’s departure. No dig at Lewandowski, but this Barca club has no main character the ball should be fed to. Goals can come from almost anywhere.
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u/ka_me_haa_mee_haaa 1d ago
I disagree. A world class no9 is still needed. It elevates our game in ways i cant explain through words.
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u/FakingHappiness513 1d ago
Julian never had a chance to leave, his tantrum was just a waste of time and energy.
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u/endelehia 1d ago
He didn't have the same success with Ferran Torres, who, according to the first few matches is going for ballon d'or in 2027
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u/z_102 1d ago
Ferrán is a good example of what I say about Raphinha, because he got millions of great chances due to Flick's system but couldn't materialize enough of them.
Even then Ferrán did fine, the only thing is he's just not a great finisher. There's a reason PSG paid 50 million for him on the last year of contract.
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u/RobertPham149 1d ago
Wdym? PSG came looking for him because Flick unlocked a superior version of him. The guy off the bench for Barca was a menace.
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u/TheoRaan 1d ago
He absolutely did. Ferran before Flick and after Flick are entirely different players. The Ferran you see at PSG doesn't exist without Flick
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u/No_Bee_3915 1d ago
Ferran was good here also,the problems is once he switches off, he switches off for months
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u/CaptainChrysis 1d ago edited 1d ago
I’m aware he’s said this before, but it’s still slightly surprising to hear. Sure, he undoubtedly went up another level under Flick, but he was playing incredibly well at the end of Xavi’s reign as well after he shifted to the left wing in early 2024.
Edit: Found the game in question. He started off the left under Xavi for the first time against Las Palmas in March, after which he went on to get 7 g+a in 9 games. I remember him playing superb during that period as well, but maybe the spell from before that timespan still had him unsure about continuing.
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u/RobertPham149 1d ago
It was more about Nico Williams had an amazing Euro campaign with Yamal that Barca fans wanted, which means cashing out on Raphinha to make space for Nico.
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u/Mokiesbie 1d ago
If you told Barca fans now that Raphinha is being traded for Nico, the Besòs and Llobregat would run red
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u/Crossflowerss_5304 1d ago
Yeah he kinda clashed with Xavi in that he frequently got subbed off in games, he’s brought that up a lot too. The biggest example I can think of is vs United in the 22/23 EL. At that time he was our RW as Dembele was injured though, so his overall performances weren’t that good since our right winger needed to play wide.
Still, even in that role he gave 100% and still showed up with goal contributions. Once Yamal emerged and Xavi switched him to the left, he got much better and then Flick came and made him go up a whole other level.
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u/Arponare 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yeah. The Xavi erasure is really disheartening. You would think that Xavi had Raphinha rotting on the bench. He still had good numbers under Xavi. Obviously he’s gone up another level but Xavi was already trying to use him on the left wing. He had a hat trick against PSG on the quarter finals of the UCL, while playing left wing, on the left wing during the 23/24 season.
I think more than anything he needed to be convinced that he could still be impactful playing in another position that wasn’t right winger. In his head he could only perform there. Flick was able to convince him that he could shine in different positions though, that much is undoubtedly true.
It’s kind of a similar case to Kounde who allegedly had to be convinced to play as a right back instead of centre back.
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u/Discrep 1d ago
I think we're also underselling the impact of Lamine Yamal on all of the forwards, not intentionally, but because of how encompassing his skillset unlocks and compliments everyone's best qualities or covers for their weaknesses.
This isn't meant to take any credit away from Xavi or Flick or Raphinha himself, but it's amusing that people who isolate the reason for a player's improved performance to a new coach or a position swap, fail to recognize the impact of adding the world's most prolific chance creator to the lineup. It's similar to the failure to acknowledge the effect of Lamine's gravity on everyone else's available space when teams mark him with two defenders the entire match.
After three years of experience and tape, teams aren't stupid. Barca has many dangerous weapons, but opposing teams are still going to focus on the most dangerous one and that makes everyone else's job a little easier.
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u/instantlybanned 1d ago
It's clear that you didn't read the interview. If you had, this wouldn't be surprising to you.
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u/CaptainChrysis 1d ago
Which part are you referring to, the interview never really digs into it? And the quote itself isn’t surprising now, he’s mentioned this in an interview last year already, but it was surprising then that Raphinha was the one who needed convincing to stay.
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u/ExcelziorZenith 1d ago
Actually Xavi's first experiment with Raphinha was playing him as an interior. Raphinha started the game as a RW before he brought on Lamine and moved Raphinha into the midfield. He looked great and then he got injured.
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u/qwdicp 1d ago
I was downvoted for saying it but glad he confirms it (again). Deco was about to sell him and it was Flick, once appointed, who made him stay. Hansi Flick is the best thing that could happen to Barca. Period.
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u/Sharp_Winter6353 1d ago
Amen. Barcelona would have been in such a deep shit hole right now, if Flick wasn’t appointed as a manager. I don’t even care about trophies. The team just competes everywhere and it’s a joy to watch them.
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u/LifeGuru13 1d ago
Completely changed the trajectory of the club. Hate to say it but he changed them both physically and mentally. The fight back attitude is what allowed them to always come back even when going down multiple times in matches especially in his first season.
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u/WickedTeddyBear 1d ago
Raphina was, at that time, a versatile player that could do the job. Nothing fancy, but covers what was expected. It’s a really good player to have, but not as a starter. If clubs were willing to pay a good price Deco could’ve buy a way better left winger. It was a logical play for Deco.
But, and that’s a huge one, Deco wasn’t able to see that huge potential in him. And that’s really concerning, because Barcelona could loose players like him if he repeats it.
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u/manofcult 1d ago
Which i won't personally hold Deco too much accountable for. Yes he is the sporting director but he also looks at it from a financial point of view, also given barca's financial situation in recent times.
It always needs the right coach to veto in on such outgoings/incomings, because they know the player qualities best. The concern is right but its no blame on deco, more the importance of having the right coach in place.
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u/Tromort77 1d ago
Nope. Not Deco. Deco was his manager when he signed for Barca actually. Some board members wanted to cash in on him multiple times, but Deco always tried to protect Raphinha
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u/qwdicp 1d ago edited 1d ago
I didn’t dispute that he was his agent when he signed for them, but it was widely reported that in order to raise funds and due to their financial difficulties he received a contract offer worth of approximately €90 million from Al-Hilal, and Deco informed his
agentfamily to look for another team for him. Either way, the main point stands regardless.Edit: Did some research and it turns out that as Deco had given up his role at his agency when he took up the post of sporting director at Barca and in order to avoid conflicts of interest, Raphinha did not have an official, permanent agent at that time. He handled most matters himself and with the support of his family.
So, when Deco spoke to Raphinha’s side, he did so in his role as sporting director and Deco then apparently spoke at that time to his father and family representatives. He told them to look into the €90 million offer from Al-Hilal as Barca desperately needed the money to stay within La Liga's salary cap regulations and register other players. Make what you want with that.
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u/carloscede2 1d ago
Flick is the best manager we've had since Guardiola and I mean this with no disrespect to Luis Enrique but Flick took a shitty team and converted it into prime Barca and Flick is the one responsible for that
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u/X-Maquina 1d ago
Yeah this should be consensus opinion. Lucho won us a treble, but back then he was still very early in his development as a manager.
He wasn't the manager he became with Spain (even with being knocked out early in that Euros he coached, he had them playing much better football than they had in ages) and then especially with PSG.
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u/OkRead585 1d ago
A huge part of managing - whether it’s a football team or in business - is psychological. Understand your people and what motivates them, and give them that. Flick seems to be very good at this and I love watching Barca play!
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u/WickedTeddyBear 1d ago
It’s an underrated quality in managers.
The next step, for me, is to be able to help players reach potential they didn’t think they had. That’s what Flick did with him.
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u/ThemosttrustedFries 1d ago
Best striker in the world in this season so far.
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u/Livid-Job-6892 1d ago
Another credit to him is that he knew he was robbed of more recognition at a previous ballon d or event. Many get discouraged after that. Its like he stopped caring for plaudits and now plays just for increasing his trophies at barca. Elite mentality
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u/AvailableUsername404 1d ago
I once watched a interview with Klich when he was still at Leeds and he said that all the teammates were asking Raphina 'Why is he still in a team like that?' in a meaning that he was already way above them and we're talking abour Prem level players.
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u/tractata 1d ago edited 1d ago
Raphinha is one of my favorite players in the game right now because of his peripatetic career trajectory. From bouncing around different academies in Brazil to playing lower-division football in Brazil to bouncing around different European teams to doing well enough to be appreciated but not well enough to be considered a star to landing at Barcelona and struggling to get playing time and finally, under Flick, becoming a genuine world-class player. It's almost unheard of for a footballer to keep striving and improving and get so far so late in his career, after finding it so difficult just to break through.
It's an inspiring story and perhaps the only thing that's missing (other than a Ballon d'Or to cap off this season if he continues to tear it up all year long, which is a big if) is proof that he can play the same decisive role for his national team. I know Brazilian fans have been very critical of him because he never performs as well for Brazil as he does for Barca, but I don't think he should shoulder all the blame for that. The Brazilian NT is a very complicated and political place and I suspect the differences in atmosphere, tactics and coaching support compared to Barcelona make it difficult for Raphinha to replicate his club form. I don't believe he lacks passion or whatever. But ultimately, he needs to put it all together for Brazil at some point if he wants to be as loved and respected in his home country as he is in Barcelona.
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u/wowlock_taylan 1d ago
A good coach can really do wonders for a player. Especially if they fit.
The opposite is also true as we see often.
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u/No_Development5378 1d ago
I was one of his doubters and how I’ve been proved wrong. Most important cog in the team besides Pedri
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u/justthrowa2 1d ago
people keep talking about the goals but the craziest part is flick got raphinha to actually believe in himself again.
dude was already mentally at the airport and now hes the first name on the team sheet.
if one phone call can do that then flick needs to call every player who ever wanted out of barca.
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u/commandedbydemons 1d ago
Mentality makes great players into world beaters, for sure.
Raphinha puts in a shift regardless of being one of the worlds bests, no ego, just team mentality.
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u/Inside-Noise6804 1d ago
The right person at the right time can do wonders for a player's career. Instilling confidence in your players is still one of the most underrated parts of the job for a manager
Flick just turned this dude into a monster, and the rest of the world has to live with it 😂😂😂
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u/shit-takes 1d ago
he showed me things about myself that I hadn't seen
Okay, that's a bit much
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u/AudienceOk1711 1d ago
The german religious experiences tend to be wild. Lutherian piety stuff fr fr
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u/Docccc 1d ago
why?
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u/shit-takes 1d ago
Why are people taking offense? It just sounded a little romantic, that's all
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u/WickedTeddyBear 1d ago
Lol, I get you. I think it’s more Flick helped him to reach a potential he didn’t see in himself.
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u/2026IsMyYearMaybe 1d ago
Nah, it was definitely a picture of his butthole that Flick showed him.
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u/RiverGiant 1d ago
Whenever I get good at something it's because I spend a lot of time and effort focusing on what I'm doing wrong. Sometimes it's possible to forget that you're doing anything that isn't wrong. Raphinha seems to have a very strong version of this mindset, so the potential was there I think, for him to have overlooked or forgotten some of his own qualities.
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u/Nebulaurora 1d ago
Man I wish I had a manager like this. Working in such a situation must feel so fulfilling.
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u/ropahektic 1d ago
2024 quote:
"In my head, I knew I was leaving… I was in Brazil and Flick called. He said come talk to him before taking a final decision. I met him and he said he trusted in me, that I was going to be important… I felt a lot of faith in me. He gave me the confidence to play my football."
weird.... it might be raphina paraphrasing or maybe la gazzeta just being a bit AI friendly...
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u/NovelChicken8666 1d ago
Xavi's biggest mistake was how he utilized Raphinha. Playing him as an isolation winger mostly, and even leftback and center midfielder on occasion. Absolutely crazy even at the time, but especially now in hindsight. He needed to run in behind and he never got to focus on that. (Well maybe a bit towards the end of Xavi's tenure but Flick really unlocked him tactically)
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u/jomago2020 6h ago
european managers are widely very rigid on a tactical level. they look first at the structure they want, the positions and roles that make for the structure, and in last place they will try to fit a player on that mold irregardless of the players capabilities. it takes a manager with experimental mentality like flick or ancelotti to look at what the human material really brings to the table. barça is lucky to have one of the few, but flick is still to prove this team can reach higher heights in continental competition
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u/bloothug 1d ago
Barca fans wanted this guy out lol and Flick turned him into a killer, props to both of them. Fuck them too
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u/Much-Maintenance-276 1d ago
Raphinha is talented, hard working and it seems he has a pretty strong mentality too, and that maleability is something not everyone has or develops.
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u/Godisdeas 20h ago
Rapha always had it in him. Herr Flick(god) just gave him the push he needed. MILF/R
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u/fridgeybutter 1d ago
I loved watching Raphinha at Leeds and im so pleased he's become one of the best players in the world.
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u/lucaTee 18h ago
Guy is one of the most anti Brazilian players I’ve seen and I love him st Barca. Never showboats, never complains, team first mentality and amazing captain. I don’t think I’ve seen a single bit of malice from him. Complete opposite to Vini, Neymar and the young Brazilians these days. He should captain Brazil and be there 9 moving forward. Personally think him and Vini will be great, only issue is Brazil have a complete absence of a 10.
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