Barcelona winger Raphinha injures himself while kicking water coolers in frustration after being subbed off against Manchester United: Reports
Raphinha's temper tantrums are getting the better of Xavi who benched him against Cadiz
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Brazilian winger Raphina was put under immense criticism again after another bout of anger on Thursday. He was replaced in the 75th minute of the UEFA Europa League tie against Manchester United, which Barcelona lost.
According to reports, the wideman kicked the bottle coolers multiple times in anger. It was initially reported that he had injured himself in the process however, there has been no confirmation from the club.
Raphinha’s angry outbursts have become a theme as the winger displayed similar theatrics in the first leg as well. While he was one of the key players at Camp Nou, at Old Trafford, he was largely anonymous.
Barcelona’s dismal run in Europe continues
Barcelona lost to Manchester United 2-1 in the evening and crashed out of the Europa League, ending their time in Europe. Since 2016, the Blaugrana have made it to the semis only once in 2019. However, this loss can have far-reaching implications. The Catalan giants are going through a severe financial crisis. They had to pull in all of their levers to give a final push to build a super team.
However, a lot of it depended on European revenue. In La Liga, Barcelona is leading the race with a 10-point advantage. So the prize money is expected to mitigate some of their European failures but people in the know think it will not suffice.
Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski were among the chief acquisitions in the summer. While Lewandowski has already scored 25 goals, Raphinha has had just eight goal contributions. Some fans have also questioned whether this output is worth the €58 million Barca paid to Leeds United.
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Raphinha vs Manchester United
Interestingly, the Brazilian has never won against Manchester United in five attempts. Three of them came from his time back in England where he ended up on the losing side that conceded 15 goals in three matches.
He has just two goals against the Red Devils. One of them was scored in the reverse fixture last week. His curling cross evaded Lewandowski and duped David De Gea to nestle in the back of the net.
However, on Thursday, the Brazilian’s performance was rather pedantic. He took just two shots in the entire game and none of them were on target. He completed just 20 of his attempted 28 passes and lost possession 16 times.
The Blaugrana will go to play Almeria on Sunday with a desire to extend their league on top of the table to 10 points. Xavi will return to his 4-3-3 formation for this match and Raphinha must behave to stay out of the limelight.
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Arpan Ghosh
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