Barcelona announce agreement in principle to sign Raphinha

Barcelona have announced they have an agreement in principle to sign Brazilian winger Raphinha from Leeds United, pending a medical.

An official statement on the club’s website regarding the move said: “FC Barcelona and Leeds United Football Club have reached an agreement in principle for the transfer of Raphael Dias Belloli, Raphinha, pending the player passing his medical.”

Speaking earlier on Wednesday, Leeds manager thanked Raphinha for his performances, particularly at the end of the 2021/22 season:

“As much as it’s really hard to lose Raphinha I will say this about him – if you think about a young man, who was pretty much guaranteed to go on a reduced transfer fee 100 per cent to Barcelona if we were relegated and then you watch the performances and the commitment he had to make sure that the club was going to stay up.

“I think it’d be hard for any, you know, 23, 24-year-old person with that kind of pressure and that kind of opportunity to perform the way that he did.”