There is a line from legendary Spanish manager Vicente del Bosque that many fans in Barcelona will remember with fondness: “You watch (former Barca midfielder Sergio) Busquets, you see the whole game.” Keep a close eye on one of the club’s current stars, high-flying winger Raphinha , and there’s more of a chance you’ll start to feel dizzy. Advertisement The Brazilian has hardly stood still since Hansi Flick arrived as Barcelona ’s new head coach this summer, and although his hard running and high-intensity approach is nothing we haven’t seen from him before, channelling those efforts into more dangerous areas of the pitch has fuelled a prolific start to the new season.
Despite Raphinha’s nominal starting position being left-winger, no La Liga player has taken more than his 172 attacking touches in the central third this season, as he enjoys his newfound freedom to drift inside and attack the lucrative spaces behind opposition centre-backs. The first hat-trick of the 27-year-old’s senior career, against Real Valladolid last month, was built on a collection of piercing runs through the heart of the visitors’ defence, while the second of his two goals at Villarreal last weekend saw him drift between into the centre-forward position on the transition before streaking clear of the chasing pack. “The key has been to be direct,” team-mate Lamine Yamal said to reporters after the latter game, having provided the outrageous assist for that counter-attacking fin.
