Following last season's incredible season of football, winning La Liga and the Supercopa de España while being a semifinalist in the Champions League, made year two of Hansi Flick an incredible success. Now, was it as big a success as fans expected after winning the treble under Flick the year before? Maybe not, but one thing is certain: Brazilian winger Raphinha's significance. In 57 appearances for Barcelona, the Brazilian has 34 goals and 25 assists, which, next to Lamine Yamal, looked like Europe's top duo and, with Robert Lewandowski, made for incredible football for fans to watch.
New Year, Better Raphinha
European teams have definitely learned what makes Raphinha so important for Barca, given his 13 Champions League goals in 14 matches last season, but it left fans wondering if he could do better. The answer may shock some fans, since Yamal was always called Barcelona's best player, but to kick off the new season as a striker, Raphinha may have even improved on last year’s jump. Raphinha has been on an unreal run with 11 goals and 3 assists since taking over the number 9 duties, and he looks like a man possessed on the field.
Usually, players need time to transition into new positions and learn from their mistakes, but it seems to have transformed him from Barcelona’s best player last season into arguably the most important European footballer for any club.
The Jump
Figure a trio of Raphinha-Yamal-Adeyemi attacks your team for 60-70 minutes, then you have a bench loaded with Gordon, Jesus, etc. That is not only not every defense's nightmare, but nearly impossible to keep up with, and will absolutely open up opportunities for Raphinha. Flick has done a great job building around his players, which has allowed Raphinha to come into his own, but the high-pace offense fits the model that has made Raphinha great for quite some time now at his winger position.
Seeing him take on a leadership role within the club has truly transformed him into a complete player and not just a winger-style player who waits for his time to shine, which has really turned into the glue player that this club has needed, blending well with Yamal to open up his creativity and others to do small things. In this form, a Ballon d’Or isn’t far from his future at all.
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