Raphinha hails Liam Cooper’s help in settling at Leeds United | OneFootball

Raphinha has praised former Leeds United captain Liam Cooper for guiding him through his early months at Elland Road while on World Cup duty with Brazil.

According to Leedsunited.news, the winger spoke ahead of group matches that see Brazil meet Scotland after facing Morocco, with Scotland opening against Haiti. Asked about Cooper, he highlighted the defender’s role in his adaptation.

He said Cooper supported him from the outset, helping with language when he arrived without English, and easing the shock of the style and the cold. He added that Cooper integrated him with team-mates and gave him the calm to perform.

Cooper captained Leeds back to the Premier League and, across a decade at the club since joining in 2014, was a respected voice in the dressing room.

Raphinha joined in 2020 for about £17m, then delivered the decisive penalty at Brentford that secured survival on the final day of 2021-22, his last Leeds appearance, before moving to Barcelona in a deal worth up to £55m.

Since leaving, he has become a standout for Barcelona and finished fifth in the 2025 Ballon d’Or, which lends further weight to his appraisal of Cooper.

Source: Leedsunited.news