Raphinha’s Move to the Middle is Sparking a Historic Attack | OneFootball

Europe has been put on high alert that Hansi Flick, in his second season in charge of FC Barcelona, has cracked the code on goals. There is some hand-wringing about Barça’s inability to defend counters, but that is nothing new and seems to be an ongoing point of consternation for the manager. The larger question that pundits are asking boils down to: can this Barcelona team outscore other Champions League favorites while likely conceding similar goals? The gut may answer that question in the negative, but the last eleven seasons of the Champions League support that claim. Furthermore, the early returns on numbers this season indicate that Raphinha playing as Flick’s centre-forward has unlocked something entirely new.

Health and Rotation

Against Racing Santander, Raphinha was subbed off after 67 minutes and a hat-trick. Two of those goals may have been from the penalty spot, but that stop the Brazilian from being the first player with 9+ goals in the first six La Liga matches of the season since Lionel Messi in 2017.

After a season plagued with injury that included a premature exit from Brazil’s World Cup campaign, keeping Raphinha fit was close to priority number one for Barcelona. That responsibility appears to have fallen into the hands of newly appointed fitness coach Benjamin Kugel, who joined his fellow German this offseason after replacing Julio Tous. It’s been so far so good for Raphinha, who along with Lamine Yamal and Pedri, are getting rotating more in the second half of games than Culers are accustomed to. Building up leads is allowing that happen, and it could pay huge dividends come April and May.

Historical Numbers

Raphinha moving into the middle hasn’t just unlocked the best of the Brazilian. For the first time ever, Barcelona has scored over 30 goals in all competitions through the first seven matches of the season. Barcelona has eight different goalscorers already, and it feels like only a matter of time before Anthony Gordon starts to add goals to his assists.

Aside from the season-based history, Raphinha is also climbing the Blaugrana ranks in other records. He is now the fifth highest Champions League goalscorer in the club’s history. Lionel Messi leads the pack with a staggering 120 goals, followed by Luis Suárez with 25 goals in 55 appearances, Robert Lewandowski’s 23 goals in 38 appearances, and Rivaldo’s 22 goals in 43 appearances. Raphinha is tied for fifth on that list with Neymar (21 goals in 40 appearances) and Patrick Kluivert (21 goals in 50 appearances), though Raphinha has done it in just 34 appearances. He’s also the sole player in all of Europe with 10+ goals and 10+ assists since the 2024-25 Champions League campaign began.

A Perfect Fit

There are tons of ways that Raphinha is showing his best. He’s motor, clinical finishing, and timing of his runs have all been elite in every metric, but it’s his combinations with teammates that are truly unlocking Barcelona’s best. For more on Raphinha’s movement, check out a tactical deep dive on a recent episode of The Barcelona Podcast:

It’s too early for Barcelona to begin a victory lap in the pursuit of Julián Álvarez, but the too soon returns are in Barça’s favor. The fallout for Álvarez is that he appears to be dropping his long-term agent Fernando Hidalgo, and an injury has plagued the three appearances with no goals that he’s made so far this season.