Saudi club distances itself from Barcelona star amid ongoing uncertainty | OneFootball

One player who has benefitted a lot from Hansi Flick’s arrival at the FC Barcelona bench has been the winger Raphinha. Since the German coach’s arrival, he has established himself as one of the most important players in the Blaugrana team, and also as one of the very best forwards in Europe.

Despite this growth and stellar performances in the last two seasons, the Brazilian’s future at the Blaugrana club remains somewhat uncertain. Recent weeks have seen a lot of speculation about his possible move to the Saudi side Al-Hilal, even though the forward has clearly expressed his intention to continue at Barcelona, at least for one more year.

As things stand, Raphinha is currently on vacation, after Brazil was eliminated from the World Cup in the Round of 16, and the Catalan club is waiting to hold talks with him to make a decision about his future. Meanwhile, he continues to be linked with Al-Hilal.

Now, as SPORT has reported, there has been a rather unexpected turn in this whole saga. Through the Arabic portal 365scores, Al-Hilal has clarified its position on this matter, and ensured that neither have they undertaken any talks with Raphinha or his entourage, nor do they have him in their list of priorities for this summer.

In fact, the Saudis are beginning to be annoyed by their name being constantly linked with the Brazilian star, and believe this is being done by the player’s entourage in an attempt to secure an improved contract from Barcelona.

Thus, one potential avenue for a departure has closed down for Raphinha, even though he also enjoys interest from other Saudi sides and also from some Premier League clubs. However, even though his contract no longer reflects his standing in European football, he is currently not looking for a move away from Barcelona.