Barcelona forward Raphinha enjoyed a meteoric rise to superstardom under Hansi Flick and had the best season of his career, leading Barça on and off the pitch as they won the domestic treble and made it to the Champions League semi-finals, with the Brazilian finishing as the competition’s top scorer and assist man.
Raphinha is on the shortlist of favorites for the Ballon d’Or along with Barça teammates Lamine Yamal and Pedri as well as PSG’s Ousmane Dembele, and he has a real chance to take home an award
many people — including Raphinha himself — never thought he could get.
Speaking to the official Ballon d’Or channel, Raphinha revealed that being at the ceremony is in itself a source of huge pride given his unique career path.
“With everything I’ve been through in my career, being at the ceremony is already a victory for me, one of the biggest in my professional life.
“It’s not really a goal that I set for myself. My goal is to be better than I was yesterday, to be better than I was last season. So if I’m at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, that’s already a victory for me.”
Raphinha’s humility and maturity shine here, showing how much he appreciates the journey that he has gone through to legitimately become one of the best players in the world, one who has a real shot to win the iconic award that recognizes the very best.
The Ballon d’Or ceremony takes place in Paris on Monday, September 22, and we know for sure that Raphinha will be there and will be happy whether he gets the trophy or not. He gets to be in the room where it happens.
