Raphinha has figured out how to be adopted by the Catalan public. For his first Barça jersey, the Brazilian succeeded in his match on the pitch but also shone after the match. FC Barcelona recorded a 6-0 landslide victory over Inter Miami in a pre-season friendly at Drive Pink Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Three goals were scored in each half by six different goalscorers, with the hosts outplayed in all areas.
New signing Raphinha has shown he's worth every penny of the €59m spent on him by scoring one goal providing two assists. He then sent a tackle to Real Madrid, the Catalan club's sworn enemy, before the two teams met on Sunday. Franck Kessié also seemed well established and was one of the best players in the first 45 minutes. Brand rookie Robert Lewandowski didn't take part in the action but trained with his new teammates.
It took no more than 19 minutes for FC Barcelona to open the scoring, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang tricking the keeper to complete a brilliant collective action. Raphinha joined in the fun soon after and her beautiful first touch volley made the break. Ansu Fati made it 3-0 before the break.
Xavi changed his entire starting XI in the second half but that didn't stop the players from scoring three more goals. Gavi's genius paved the way for the fourth goal, while Memphis Depay and Ousmane Dembelé also put their names on the scoresheet.
Raphinha warns Madrid ahead of Clasico
The focus now shifts to the Clasico in Las Vegas this weekend, and Raphinha wants to continue making an impact. "We always try to score against anyone, but if it's in a derby, even more so. The most important thing is winning - but for me we are better than Real Madrid ," he said. he declares.
"I'm very happy to have scored my first goal. It was a good game. I tried to play a good game. I'm very happy and I hope to continue like this ," concluded the Brazilian. A speech that is likely to delight his new supporters.
All eyes were on the Poland international after his transfer was officially announced on Tuesday afternoon. He took part in the pre-match warm-up session with his teammates but Xavi refrained from using him in the game. This means Robert Lewandowski could make his Clasico debut which would be a big moment for the former Bayern Munich striker.