Barcelona looked close to their best version in the victory against Atlético Madrid and Raphinha was an integral part of the well-rounded performance, so much so that rival manager, Diego Simeone, gave him the ultimate compliment following the match.
Raphinha was everywhere in the 3–1 win against Atlético. He pressed tirelessly, made incisive runs behind the backline and scored his first goal in over two months to ignite Barcelona’s comeback.
His influence on Hansi Flick’s system was clear for everyone to see and Barcelona finally showed flashes of their treble-winning 2024–25 self. Simeone witnessed it first hand and threw massive praise the Brazilian’s way in the aftermath of his side’s defeat.
“I love him [Raphinha],” Simeone told . “He plays everywhere. He plays as a winger, wingback, on the wing, as a second striker, he scores goals, he presses. He’s a player that, last year, I don’t know how he didn’t win the Ballon d’Or.”
“But well, it’s football and people can pick whoever they want, but I’d pick him, I love him.”
To the surprise of many, Raphinha came in fifth in the 2025 Ballon d’Or voting, behind fellow teammate Lamine Yamal who finished second after winner Ousmane Dembélé.
