La Azurra tempted Raphinha when he was playing for Leeds United and had not yet been called up by the Brazilian team
‘Rapha’s’ dream was always to follow in the footsteps of his idol Ronaldinho Gaucho: defend Barça and the Seleçao
La Azurra, which has insisted in recent years on reinforcing itself with nationalized Brazilian soccer players, knocked on Raphinha’s doorwhen he was at Leeds United and was still trained by Marcelo Bielsa.
The winger, who did not act professionally in his country and who has Italian nationality through his father, always had the dream of following in the footsteps of his idol Ronaldinho Gaucho, who is a friend of his family, both at club and international level. selection. For this reason, he politely rejected the offer, convinced that one day he would put on the ‘amarelinha’, as it ended up happening in the end.
The persistence of the gaucho, which is one of his best virtues, meant that he did not take the same path as his compatriots Rafael Toloi, Emerson Palmieri and Jorginho (the latter one of Barça’s objectives to strengthen the position of midfielder), who won the last European Championship with the transalpine team.
However, due to Azzurro’s failure in the playoffs, the trio will not be in Qatar, where raphinhaone of Tite’s ‘sacred cows’, will be the undisputed starter in one of the favorites for the title. Knowing how to wait for the right moment ended up having a prize: playing for Barça, where he is convinced that he will succeed and with Brazil in the search for the ‘Hexa’.