Raphinha has been one of Barcelona’s most explosive performers under Hansi Flick, and Neymar has repeatedly voiced his admiration for the winger’s rise. Yet, as the new Champions League matchday arrives, the spotlight has unexpectedly shifted from the pitch to the microphone. The Brazilian forward delivered a blistering rant after finishing outside the top three in the Ballon d’Or standings — a reaction that Neymar, who has defended him publicly, would surely nod along to.
Across the 2024-25 season, Raphinha reached a level of consistency that few in world soccer could match. His 34 goals and 22 assists came as Barcelona swept La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup, and the Copa del Rey, with his Champions League campaign breaking long-standing records. But as the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris unfolded, it became increasingly clear that the voting panel had seen things very differently.
The award ultimately went to Ousmane Dembele after his decisive Champions League run with Paris Saint-Germain. Lamine Yamal claimed second, Vitinha third, and Mohamed Salah fourth. Raphinha, despite being statistically one of the most productive players anywhere in Europe, ended in fifth.
Neymar reacted instantly. Replying to an Instagram post breaking down the final results, he wrote on social media: “Raphinha in 5th is too much of a joke.” His outrage mirrored the sentiment among many Brazilian fans who had watched Raphinha dominate Europe. In the Champions League alone, the Barcelona winger produced 12 goals and eight assists, surpassing Lionel Messi’s iconic tally from the 2011-12 season. It was the kind of performance that normally pushes players into Ballon d’Or contention — not away from it.
Even more astonishing was the data leaked afterward by L’Equipe: Not a single journalist from anywhere in the world gave Raphinha a first-place vote. Not one. The numbers were staggering: Dembele (73 first-place votes), Yamal (11), Vitinha (6), Salah (4). Raphinha (0). Even the Brazilian journalist on the global voting panel placed him only second.
What did Raphinha say?
Now, Raphinha has addressed the issue directly before Barcelona’s Champions League clash with Chelsea. Calm, composed, but visibly unsatisfied, he laid bare what the award meant to him. “I deserved much more, but these are individual awards, and collectively we missed the Champions League — that’s what we want.”
There it was — the four words he had avoided saying until now: ‘I deserved much more.‘ Not shouted. Not weaponized. Just delivered with the conviction of a player who knows exactly what he produced over the past 12 months.
He expanded on it further, emphasizing that the outcome was beyond his control: “These aren’t things I control. People, journalists… I only control what happens on the pitch.” When asked why he wasn’t ranked higher, he pushed the question back at the media: “You’re the ones who should explain that.”
Despite the sting, the 28-year-old Brazilian refuses to let the Ballon d’Or outcome derail him. Last season’s total — 57 games, 34 goals, 26 assists — speaks for itself. He was named in the Champions League Team of the Season, crowned La Liga Player of the Year, and carried Barcelona through defining moments.
