Xavi does not want 26-year-old star to leave club, Barcelona will only consider selling if they receive offers more than €90m - Reports
Xavi Hernandez is reportedly not open to letting Raphinha leave Barcelona despite recent reports suggesting otherwise.
The Brazil international, 26, arrived in Catalonia from Leeds United last summer for a fee of €65 million with add-ons. He has become a regular in Xavi's starting XI since Ousmane Dembele's injury in January.
With the Frenchman scheduled to return from his hamstring injury soon, it has been claimed that Raphinha could be displaced from the starting XI. Other reports have claimed that Barcelona are open to letting Raphinha leave after being unconvinced by his performances.
However, journalist Javi Miguel has now clarified that Xavi does not intend to lose Raphinha. The club will apparently only consider offers greater than €90 million. They believe there are very few top-level wingers in the market and that it will cost them a king's ransom to sign them.
Raphinha has nine goals and ten assists in 42 games across competitions this season. He's the club's top assist provider, and only Robert Lewandowski has scored more goals for Barca than him (27) during this campaign.
The 26-year-old winger's latest contribution came in the form of an assist in the Blaugrana's 1-0 league win against Atletico Madrid on Sunday (April 23).
Xavi not thinking about next season before Barcelona win La Liga
Barcelona secured a key 1-0 win against Atletico Madrid to snap a three-game winless streak across competitions.
Ferran Torres' 44th-minute winner proved to be the difference as the Blaugrana giants ended the weekend 11 points clear atop the summit with eight games to go. They're currently active only in La Liga.
Given that they are out of all cup competitions and hold a virtually unassailable lead in the league, Barca can start looking forward to next season, but Xavi is not doing so.
Following his team's win at the Camp Nou, Xavi said (via MARCA (h/t BarcaUniversal):
"I’m not thinking about next season. For the club, the team and for me, it’s vital to win this league, I’ve already said it’s crucial because it would give us a lot of stability."
Xavi's first trophy as Barcelona manager came in January when they won the Supercopa de Espana against Real Madrid. Los Blancos had their revenge in the Copa del Rey semifinals, winning 4-1 on aggregate, though.
Barcelona were eliminated from UEFA Champions League in the group stage before getting knocked out of the UEFA Europa League knockout playoffs by Manchester United.