"Football hasn't seen a big game player like him since prime Messi and Ronaldo" - Fans hail Barcelona star after 2-2 Atalanta draw
Barcelona fans were delighted with Raphinha's performance in their 2-2 draw against Atalanta in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, January 29. The Catalans finished second in the UCL table with 19 points from eight games.
Raphinha assisted both of Barca's goals in the game scored by Lamine Yamal (47') and Ronald Araujo (72'). In 90 minutes of gameplay, the Brazilian made five key passes, more than anyone on the pitch, and created four big chances. He also recorded two shots on target from four attempts. Overall, the Brazil international delivered a solid performance on the pitch despite the Catalans being held to a draw, granting him a rating of 8.8 by Sofascore.
Fans took to X to applaud Raphinha's performance. One X user compared him to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in their prime and wrote:
"Football hasn't seen a Big game player like Raphinha since Prime Messi and Ronaldo."
"This Raphinha campaign is so crazy man wow," another user wrote.
"Raphinha started the Champions League with struggles but made sure he performed brilliantly in each of the following matches," another netizen opined.
"Raphinha now has 2 more goal contributions in the Champions League this season than Vinicius Jr had in his “Ballon D’or season. We just finished the Group Stage," a Culer chimed in.
Fans continued to appreciate the Brazilian's performance, which adds up to 12 G/A in eight appearances in the UEFA Champions League for Barcelona this season.
"He is the definition of doing his talking on the pitch," an X user remarked.
"Easily the most clutch European campaign I’ve seen from a Barca player since Messi," another netizen added.
"Lamine Yamal and Raphinha cooking is the best thing you will see in the world right now. Perfect duo," another person commented.
Note: All in-game statistics were taken from Sofascore and are subject to change as per the website's prerogative.
"I think it was more difficult for Atalanta than us" - Barcelona star Raphinha shares his thoughts after 2-2 draw
In the post-match press conference, Barcelona star Raphinha spoke about the game and his observations about Atalanta. He said (via Barca Universal):
"I think it was more difficult for Atalanta than us, because they were running all over the pitch in one-on-one situations and that can be a bit boring, but we knew what we had to do, we were focused on our plan."
Had Barcelona beaten Atalanta on Wednesday, they would have finished at the top of the UCL table as Liverpool lost against PSV Eindhoven. About their final standing, Raphinha added:
"Yes, in fact, we always play to win games, but we also have to take into account the quality of the opponents and Atalanta are a strong team."
Barcelona will face either Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Monaco, Brest, or Benfica in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. All these potential opponents will play knockout playoffs before the next round with the draw set to take place on January 31.