Raphinha has revealed that a phone call he received from Hansi Flick was the true turning point in his Barcelona career, after he had come close to leaving the club following two seasons during which he felt he did not receive the appreciation or status he was looking for.
The Brazilian winger arrived in the summer of 2024 convinced that departure was the best solution, before Flick contacted him immediately upon taking charge of Barcelona, asking him to postpone his decision until they could talk about the role awaiting him within his new project.
In an interview with The Guardian, Raphinha said: “I knew inside me that I was leaving, and I had already made the decision mentally.”
He added: “Flick asked me not to finalize my future before we spoke. He told me he trusted me and that I would be an important player, and at a moment like that, a few words can change everything.”
The Brazilian international continued: “I’ve always said that Flick changed my mentality, but he didn’t just change me as a player—he also changed me on a human level.”
Speaking about being chosen among Barcelona’s captains, Raphinha said: “It was as if a switch had been flipped inside me. Others saw something in me that I hadn’t discovered in myself yet, and that changed me,” adding, “Wearing the armband makes you feel important; it’s an honor, not just a piece of cloth.”
Regarding how he handles younger players, foremost among them Lamine Yamal, he explained: “I prefer to be the big brother, not the father, but sometimes you need to act in a paternal way because they are still young. And when you scold them, they know you are doing it for their own good.”
Barcelona signed Raphinha from Leeds United in the summer of 2022 for 58 million euros, plus 7 million in add-ons. After scoring 10 goals in each of his first two seasons, he exploded under Flick’s management, netting 34 goals and providing 22 assists across 57 matches in the 2024–2025 season, helping secure La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the Spanish Super Cup, before opening the current campaign with 14 goals and 3 assists in his first 8 games.
