Raphinha: I would have left Barcelona if Flick had not come

Raphinha revealed he would have left Barcelona if current head coach Hansi Flick had not joined the club.

Flick became La Blaugrana boss in May 2024, taking over the reins from Xavi after a disappointing spell with the Germany national team.

Since Flick’s arrival, only Kylian Mbappe (56) and Robert Lewandowski (39) have directly contributed to more goals in the Spanish top-flight than Raphinha (37 – 25 goals, 12 assists).

The Brazilian forward also made a crucial impact during their Supercopa de Espana exploits last week, scoring four goals and assisting another on their way to lifting the trophy in Saudi Arabia.

After struggling to find his feet in Spain under Xavi, Raphinha’s career at Barca turned around with Flick’s appointment.

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“There was a lot of self-doubt,” he said when reflecting on his first season at the club. “I have a nasty habit of criticising myself heavily, so that pressure made me think about leaving.

“If Hansi Flick hadn’t come, I would have left Barca. He changed everything. He told me that I was going to be important. That’s what a player needs – confidence.”

Raphinha will hope to continue producing the goods for his coach when Barca face Racing Santander in the Copa del Rey on Thursday.

Barca have won their last four away games in the tournament, scoring an average of three goals and keeping a clean sheet in each of those matches, their best run of away clean sheets in the competition’s history.