Following the sale of Ousmane Dembele to Paris Saint-Germain last month, Raphinha was elevated to first-choice right winger at Barcelona, a title that has previously held by the Frenchman.
Raphinha has assumed the role last season when Dembele was injured, and he did so to great effect. However, he was again a substitute with Dembele returned towards the end of the campaign.
With Dembele out of the way, Raphinha had the chance to fully establish himself as number one in the mind of head coach Xavi Hernandez. However, he failed to do as he was sent off less than 45 minutes to the new season.
Since then, Lamine Yamal has made the role his own, despite being just 16. It meant that Raphinha was benched against Osasuna, which was the first game after his two-match suspension.
Despite this poor start, Raphinha has made steps towards finding form during the international break. He started for Brazil in their 2026 World Cup qualifier against Bolivia, and he scored one and assisting another in a 5-1 victory.
Neymar is the goat over Messi and Ronaldo…look at that assist to Raphinha 😘💯Brazil 2: Bolivia 0
First goal by Rodrygo
!Sasha obama Obamas Bernardo Silva Balotelli apple music ! pic.twitter.com/MLQveJuXuH— Sandra J'❤️ (@SandraJlovie) September 9, 2023
Raphinha will be hoping that Xavi has taken note of the performance, as he desperately looks to force his way back into the starting line-up at Barcelona after the international break.
