This Saturday, Barcelona kicked off the 2025–26 La Liga season with a dominant 3–0 win over Mallorca. In that match, Raphinha equaled a mark set by Ronaldinho — one that even Neymar Jr. was never able to hit during his time with the Spanish club.
Just six minutes into the first half at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix, Lamine Yamal received the ball on the right wing and delivered a cross that sliced through Mallorca’s entire defense, finding Raphinha completely unmarked. With just a soft header, he scored the opener.
With that goal, Raphinha became the first Brazilian player to score Barcelona’s opening goal of a La Liga season in the last 18 years. The last to do it was Ronaldinho, who netted the opener for Barcelona in a 3–1 win over Athletic Bilbao on Matchday 2 of the 2007–08 season.
Nearly two decades have passed since then, and many Brazilian stars have played for Los Blaugranas. Neymar is the most notable among them, having dazzled with the Catalan side from 2013 to 2017 as part of a legendary attacking trio alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.
Raphinha of FC Barcelona
Other notable Brazilians to wear the Barcelona shirt over the past 18 years include Philippe Coutinho, Dani Alves, Paulinho, and Arthur. However, none of them managed to score the club’s first La Liga goal of the season — a feat Raphinha finally achieved this weekend.
see also
Lamine Yamal scores first great goal in Barcelona’s No. 10 shirt: When did Lionel Messi do it?
Raphinha is shining at Barcelona
After rising to prominence at Leeds United, Barcelona invested over $70 million in the summer of 2022 to sign Raphinha, with the expectation that he would become a key player for the club. So far, the Brazilian winger has more than delivered.
In his first three seasons in Spain, Raphinha has scored 54 goals in 144 appearances for Barcelona across domestic and European competitions. And with the arrival of Hansi Flick as head coach, the team seems to have found a deadly formula featuring the Brazilian star on the left wing, Lamine Yamal on the right, and Robert Lewandowski as the center forward.
Could Raphinha win the Ballon d’Or?
Just a few days ago, France Football unveiled the list of 30 finalists for the Ballon d’Or, set to be awarded on September 22 in Paris. Four Barcelona players made the cut: Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski, Pedri, and Raphinha. Of those, Yamal appears to have the strongest chance of taking home the trophy — though he faces tough competition from top contenders like Ousmane Dembele and Kylian Mbappe.
