21 Facts About Raphinha

Raphinha began his career with Brazilian club Avai, before signing for the Portuguese Vitoria de Guimaraes in 2016, where he made his professional debut.

Raphinha was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil where he grew up in Restinga, a favela far from the city centre.

Raphinha's father is of Italian descent and his mother is mixed-race Brazilian.

Raphinha had a difficult upbringing where he describes sharing a bedroom with his parents, younger brother and pets; struggling to pay travel costs and at points having to beg for food.

Raphinha has a long-standing friendship with Bruno Fernandes, starting before they became teammates at Sporting CP.

At 18 years old, Raphinha started his career with the Avai's under-20 team in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A in 2014.

On 2 February 2016, Raphinha signed for Portuguese side Vitoria de Guimaraes, having been scouted at the Copa Sao Paulo de Futebol Junior by Deco, who signed him to his agency, D20 Sports, and arranged his transfer to Vitoria.

Raphinha made his debut for the Vimaranenses on 13 March 2016 against Pacos de Ferreira.

Raphinha scored his first goal for the club against Maritimo on 20 August 2016.

Raphinha won the Vitoria Guimaraes Breakthrough Player of the Year in 2017.

Raphinha's winning goal secured Leeds' first ever Premier League win at Goodison Park and their first league win at Everton since 1990.

Raphinha finished the season with six goals, all from league fixtures.

However, Raphinha's preferred a move to Barcelona, despite their financial struggles.

Raphinha was initially presented without a name or number on his shirt due to registration issues, with the club needing to sell players to register players and make new signings.

At the second part of the season, he was handed a chance to impress when Dembele picked up a muscle injury, but was inconsistent over that period, leading Raphinha to be in and out of the starting XI.

Raphinha eventually lost his spot in the starting XI to young prospect Lamine Yamal, who had already scored during Raphinha's absence due to injury and at the end of the first part of the season, he had scored only three goals.

On 9 April 2025, Raphinha equaled the Barcelona legend, Lionel Messi's record for goal involvements in a Champions League season, 19.

Raphinha assisted two goals and won a penalty in 45 minutes on the pitch, receiving praise from sports pundits and fans.

On 7 November 2022, Raphinha was named in the squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup by manager Tite.

Raphinha is a versatile winger known for his technical ability, agility, pace and defensive work rate.

Raphinha's dribbling, characterized by close control, rapid changes of direction, and a blend of speed and creativity, allows him to beat defenders in one-on-one situations.