Barcelona and Leeds confirm Raphinha transfer agreement as €65m deal moves closer
Barcelona and Leeds have confirmed that an agreement is in place for Raphinha to move to the Spanish club in a deal worth up to €65 million (£55m/$65m). The Brazil winger will now undergo a medical and sign his Barcelona contract, which will run through 2027, on Wednesday as he prepares to seal his move to La Liga.
Raphinha had also been courted by Chelsea and Arsenal, but ultimately chose to leave the Premier League after two years in England.
Barcelona & Leeds confirm Raphinha agreement
Leeds have confirmed an agreement with Barca for the sale of Raphinha in a statement on their website, which reads: "We can confirm that an agreement in principle has been reached with FC Barcelona for the transfer of Raphinha.
"The player will now undergo a medical in Spain."
Barca have released a statement of their own ahead of Raphinha's move being made official, with the winger's unveiling in front of Camp Nou supporters then due to be arranged.
Agreement in principle with @LUFC for the transfer of Raphinha
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 13, 2022
A closer look at the deal
The negotiations to bring Raphinha to Barcelona had been underway since Sunday, with the winger having his heart set on Barcelona despite prior links to Chelsea.
The Blues had made an identical proposal to Barcelona's, leaving the Brazilian with a choice of his next club.
In the end, he chose Barca, with agent and former member of both clubs Deco taking charge of the deal. Raphinha will now earn double what he made in salary during his time with Leeds, while Barca will pay an initial €59m (£50m/$59m) in installments, and a further €6m (£5m/$6m) in potential add-ons.
Raphinha will have a medical in Barcelona on Wednesday after the club agreed a fee with Leeds 🤝
— GOAL News (@GoalNews) July 12, 2022
Barcelona will pay £55 million up front, with a further £10m potentially paid in add-ons. pic.twitter.com/4nvoBVxwOV
Raphinha's time at Leeds
The winger originally joined Leeds in 2020 after breaking out with French side Rennes in 2019-20.
He made a total of 67 appearances for the club, scoring 17 goals during his time in England.
Raphinha also broke through with Brazil's national team, earning each of his nine caps since making the move to Leeds.
Raphinha is following in the footsteps of some Brazilian attacking greats at Barcelona 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/xewQ3qGZY5
— GOAL (@goal) July 12, 2022
Chelsea's summer business
The Blues have missed out on an important target, but they still have a busy window ahead of them.
A deal for Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling is being wrapped up, while their pursuit of new centre-backs continues, with Kalidou Koulibaly, Nathan Ake and Matthijs de Ligt on their radar.
The latter is also being chased by Bayern Munich, who were in Turin this week for negotiations with Juventus.