Raphinha insists leaving Leeds United for Barcelona is “exactly what he wanted” in an interview with Brazilian media. A two-year stint at Elland Road came to an end in July when the La Liga giants forked out £60million to sign the talismanic winger.
Despite a relegation-threatened campaign, Raphinha still managed to sparkle and finished as the Whites’ top goalscorer. Speculation regarding his future plagued the transfer agenda last season, with Liverpool tipped to sign the wideman.
However, it was Barcelona - a club famed for its Brazilian alumni - who lured another South American star away from Elland Road. Raphinha grew up in the same town as Ronaldinho and appeared destined to follow in his footsteps.
Read more: Darko Gyabi verdict as Leeds United youngster handed challenge by U21s boss Michael Skubala
The former Leeds maverick has known the national icon since a young age. Even though he did not speak to Ronaldinho before leaving Leeds, Raphinha believes his advice would have aligned with his decision.
“I already talked about my family’s relationship with Ronaldinho,” Raphinha told UOL. “He is one of my idols who wore this shirt. I didn’t get to talk to him before I came here, but I’m sure he would tell me to follow my dream.”
“If you’ve come this far, you already know a lot about my life. All the difficulty to be a player, to get here. But, with the help of my family, I dribbled through life. I keep dribbling, now at Barcelona. But before that dream came true, a lot happened.”
Raphinha also revealed it was not just Barcelona who tried to sign him last summer. However, the fact his “childhood heroes” played for the Catalans swung the deal in their favour.
He added: “When people ask me if I imagined leaving Leeds for the biggest club in the world and joining the Brazilian national team within a year, I answer that I not only imagined it, but also managed to achieve it.
“With a lot of effort and dedication, I achieved what I always wanted. I had a lot of offers after my time at Leeds, but I knew exactly what I wanted. My childhood idols played for Barcelona, so I had the dream of coming here and I spared no effort to achieve it.”
READ NEXT:
- Go here for all the latest Leeds United news
- Kalvin Phillips still backed to make World Cup starting XI despite post-Leeds United struggles
- Fresh potential problem emerges over rescheduling of Leeds United's trip to Man United
- Leeds United confirm 25-man Premier League squad with few surprises as academy graduate returns
- Leeds United U21s' predicted line-up for Southampton clash as key first team quartet set to play
