Raphinha Returns to Barcelona: A Crucial Pre-Season Ahead

Raphinha is back in Barça colours, and this time the stakes feel higher than ever.

The Brazilian winger reported for duty at St George’s Park in England earlier today, cutting short the quiet of his summer break to rejoin Hansi Flick and a Barcelona squad already deep into their pre-season grind. With the La Liga opener against Elche looming on 23 August, his return is both a relief and a challenge.

Back from a bruising World Cup

He arrives carrying more than just luggage.

Raphinha’s World Cup with Brazil ended in frustration and treatment rooms. He started the first two group-stage games, only for a thigh injury in his right leg to force him off after 39 minutes of the second match against Haiti. That was it. No comeback, no redemption arc. Brazil crashed out in the round of 16 against Norway, and he watched the rest from the sidelines.

Barcelona, though, expect him to step into pre-season fully recovered, cleared to train and ready to work from day one. The club need the player he was, not the one stuck watching from the bench in national colours.

No rush into friendlies

Even so, there will be no immediate plunge into match action.

Journalist Nil Sola reports that, as things stand, Raphinha is unlikely to feature in Barça’s first two pre-season friendlies. The Catalans face Birmingham City on 31 July and Preston North End on 3 August, but the Brazilian has only just joined up with the group, and the coaching staff are not inclined to gamble.

The temptation is obvious. The timeline is not.

For now, his pre-season will be built on training pitches rather than stadium lights, with Flick and his staff keen to prioritise conditioning over cameos.

Flick wants his Ballon d’Or contender back

This is not just any returning winger. Flick wants the version of Raphinha who briefly brushed the edges of football’s elite.

During the 2024-25 season, under Flick’s guidance, the Brazilian delivered the best football of his career. He exploded statistically: 34 goals and 26 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions. Those numbers pushed his name into the Ballon d’Or conversation and turned Barcelona’s attack into a far sharper, more relentless unit.

When he played, Barça pressed higher, broke faster, and carried a constant threat. Defenders had to respect him. Teammates fed off him.

Last season told a very different story. Injuries cut through his momentum, limiting him to 33 appearances and 21 goals. Two serious hamstring problems dragged him in and out of the side, never quite letting him find rhythm or authority over the campaign.

For player and coach alike, that cannot become the new normal.

A tailored plan for a decisive season

So this pre-season is not just about tactics or shape. It is about rebuilding a body that must withstand the demands of an entire year at the top.

Barcelona’s new head of physical preparation, Benjamin Kugel, has put together a bespoke fitness programme for Raphinha. It is not a generic plan bolted onto the rest of the squad’s work; it is an individual roadmap designed to keep him on the pitch, not in the treatment room.

The objective is clear: protect his hamstrings, manage his load, and restore the explosiveness that once made him one of Europe’s most influential wide forwards.

Raphinha knows what his peak looks like. Flick knows how devastating that peak can be for opponents. Barcelona know how different their season feels when he is flying down the flank instead of sitting in the stands.

The work starts now in the quiet of St George’s Park. The question is simple and unforgiving: can he stay fit long enough to turn those Ballon d’Or whispers into something more concrete?