Xavi Hernández has revealed he personally pushed FC Barcelona to sign Raphinha, insisting the club always had full belief in the Brazilian winger, Softfootball reports.
In March, he claimed that he tried to re-sign Lionel Messi during his tenure at the Spotify Camp Nou, and while that was unsuccessful, he did manage to acquire another of his desires.
According to Fabrizio Romano on his x handle, Xavi said:
I was the one who told the club to sign Raphinha. I wanted him already when he was in Portugal, I was at Al Sadd…
I remember a conversation with Raphinha when he was feeling frustrated. I told him; Rapha, I signed you for 5 years, calm down! We trust you. He’s now exploded at Barça, I’m so
The former Barça coach expressed his satisfaction with Raphinha’s rise, highlighting how the winger has now “exploded” at the club after overcoming early struggles.
During his time in charge, Xavi also played a key role in shaping Barcelona’s future, including handing a debut to Lamine Yamal, who has since developed into one of the most exciting young players in world football and drawn comparisons to Lionel Messi.
Xavi further revealed that not all of his transfer requests were successful, confirming he had previously asked the club to sign Martín Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, but the move was blocked due to financial constraints.
