Five goals, and a Brazilian at the centre of them
Barcelona did not ease into their Champions League campaign. Five past Feyenoord, one conceded, and Raphinha running the whole thing.
The Brazilian scored twice. The first came off a left-footed dummy that sent Charles Vanhoutte and Jeremiah St Juste the wrong way. The second was a Pedri through ball finished the way a specialist centre-forward finishes. Adeyemi, Lamine Yamal from a free kick and Gabriel Jesus got the rest. Steijn scored a consolation late.
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Barca never bought a striker, so he became one
That brace takes him to eight for the season. The change came when Hansi Flick started using him through the middle. Barcelona spent the summer chasing Julian Alvarez from Atletico and never landed him, so the position sat empty. Raphinha filled it.
“In every situation, we can swap positions and that’s good. Dani Olmo gives us great control, while Raphinha gives us intensity. He takes full advantage of our transitions and passes like the ones Pedri plays,” Flick said afterwards.
Four times in five matches this season Barca have scored five.
Left off a list he used to top
Raphinha is not among the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or. He finished fifth last year. Flick did not hide his irritation. “Raphinha played a great match. He and Pedri should both be on that list. They are both excellent, but it’s not something we can change.”
The player refused the bait entirely. “I don’t talk about that. I only talk about Barcelona.” He said his aim is to stop disappearing for stretches of the season.
Forcing his way back into that conversation means doing it in Europe. Barcelona have not lifted the trophy since 2015.
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