“He is building that image of a leader” – Barcelona icon heaps praise on Raphinha | OneFootball

Raphinha has arguably been Barcelona’s best performing player this season, and his stock has never been as high as it is now. After scoring twice in Tuesday’s sensational comeback victory over Benfica, his tally for the campaign is now 22 goals and nine assists across all competitions, which has him as one of the best players in Europe in terms of output.

Many people associated with Barcelona have been in awe of Raphinha’s performances this season, and one of those has been his countryman Rivaldo, who wore the Blaugrana jersey between 1997 and 2002. Speaking in a recent interview (via Relevo), the 52-year-old heaped praise on his fellow Brazilian, who he also expects to make a difference on the international scene.

“Raphinha is building that image of a leader for the Brazilian national team. He is already the captain at Barcelona, a crucial player in the team, and he has been playing very well, with personality, which will help him a lot in the national team.

“Having a player with so much confidence is wonderful for Brazil, especially ahead of the World Cup. If Brazil has him, as well as Vinicius, who always performs well, with Neymar, who can return in good shape, and with Rodrygo, they will have a very strong attack.”

Rivaldo believes that Marcus Rashford would be a positive signing for Barcelona (Photo by Alex Livesey / Getty Images)

Rivaldo was only asked about Barcelona’s prospective signing of Marcus Rashford, which does appear to be losing traction in recent days.

“An arrival like Rashford can only be positive because it helps the coach build a better team and gives him more options to choose between those alternatives to put on the field.”

Rashford would likely be Raphinha’s understudy on the left wing, and that would be a dangerous pairing for any club to come up against. However, it does appear difficult for Barcelona to bring in the Manchester United player this month, as they can only do so if Ansu Fati agrees to leave – so far, he has not given the green light.