Barcelona captain Raphinha revealed how he helped to lift Lamine Yamal’s spirits during Wednesday’s Champions League win over Feyenoord at Camp Nou.
Raphinha was once again in superb form in the game, scoring twice as Hansi Flick’s side picked up another big win.
Lamine Yamal was also on target and Raphinha said he offered the teenager some motivational words during the match.
“I know Lamine because he tends to withdraw from the game when things aren’t going well. I tried to encourage him and tell him he was
going to score, so he wouldn’t leave the game,” he told Movistar.
“In the end, he managed to score, and I was very happy for him. He needed that goal. That’s how a winning team is made: when everyone is happy for each other.”
Yamal scored from a free-kick and ran straight over to celebrate with Raphinha, who had already gone off, after the ball hit the back of the net.
Raphinha also spoke about his team’s incredible start to the season and says he’s hopeful the Catalans can maintain their current form.
“The truth is, we always have to show our fans near-perfect football. We’ve been playing very well from the start of the season. We could have scored [more] with the chances we had,” he added.
“In such a long season, there are many ups and downs. Starting the season like this gives us confidence. The idea is to keep it up and try to minimise the low points. To keep playing good matches is what we want.”
The win is a great start to the Champions League for Barca. Their next game in the competition is away at Galatasaray on October 13th.
