Football – Barcelona’s ‘dominant’ form is a sign of team’s intent, says Raphinha – ThePrint – ReutersFeed

(Reuters) – Barcelona striker Raphinha said on Saturday that starting the season with four consecutive wins was a clear statement for players to prove their worth.

After scoring the first hat-trick of his career and providing two assists to lead Barca to a 7-0 victory over Real Valladolid, Raphinha said the result showed the club had the players they needed to compete in the competition.

“We are in very good shape. The team is working hard. Today’s result shows what we are working for. We saw that the coach (Hansi Flick) was on the sidelines demanding more (goals), and that is our mentality.”

“We are hungry and want to score as many goals as possible. When we are as dominant as we have been recently, the best way we can show respect to our opponents is to not let up.”

Raphinha was one of the players who came under fire during Barca’s title-less last season and there were strong rumours that he was facing suspension as the club struggles with increasing financial problems and desperately needs to cut first-team wage bills to meet LaLiga’s financial requirements.

Barca let go of Ilkay Gündogan, Clement Lenglet, Vitor Roque and several academy players and signed just one player during the off-season. Midfielder Dani Olmo arrived from RB Leipzig after being central to Spain’s triumph at Euro 2024.

New coach Flick has given Raphinha a key role, allowing him to shine as a versatile offensive weapon in Barca’s first four games.

“I don’t know if it was my best game today, but it is definitely one of my best. I will try to play even better and give as much as I can,” said the Brazilian.

“I’m very happy to be able to help the team. I feel good. I knew this season would be very important for me. I want to do my best to help my teammates and be more confident.”

Barcelona go into the international break top of the table with a perfect 12 points from four games, five points ahead of second-placed Villarreal and seven ahead of arch-rivals Real Madrid in fourth place, both of whom have played a game less.

(Reporting by Fernando Kallas)

Disclaimer: This report is auto-generated by Reuters. ThePrint takes no responsibility for its content.