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Raphinha picks his preferred spot & reveals his pre-season goal target.
Raphinha acknowledges that he would prefer to be playing on the right wing for Barcelona, but he is adapting to life on the left flank.
After standing himself as a creative force for Leeds United in the Premier League, Brazil international earned a move to Camp Nou in the summer of 2022. This season, Barcelona has occasionally played him in his preferred position, but he frequently lines up on the other side of the pitch from where he feels most at home as a left-footed player attempting to cut inside.
Raphinha has told Catalunya Radio of his favoured position: “I haven’t played on the left for a long, long time. Almost five years ago. I adapted to playing on the right and I like playing there better. The problem is that when you arrive at a new club, it is important to play in your place to adapt and play well. But I spoke with the coach and if he puts me on the left, I want to continue helping.”
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Raphinha has had to work hard for regular game time at Barca, having seen a January move away touted, and he is closing in on the pre-season targets that he set for himself.
The 26-year-old added on his end product: “I am never satisfied. At the beginning of the season, I set a target of 10 goals and 10 assists. And if I get there, I go up to five more goals and five more assists. Now I’m close to my first target, but with eight goals and nine assists, so I’m still not satisfied.”
Barcelona, which is now atop the La Liga standings, will return to play on Sunday when they travel to Athletic Club. In their next four matches in both league and Cup del Rey competition, they will face off against Real Madrid twice more in another Clasico