Joan Laporta tells media that Raphinha wants to join Barcelona | OneFootball

In a summer full of rumours and whispers, Barcelona President Joan Laporta was refreshingly clear with his words on Saturday evening.

Speaking at a homage to Johan Cruyff, Laporta attended to the media’s questions for a full 15 minutes, confirming that Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen were signing with the club, that Rafa Marquez would be B team manager and opining on Frenkie de Jong’s future.

One of the other big topics on the agenda was the potential transfer for Raphinha, with Sport reporting his answer.

“We have spoken with Leeds. I don’t think it will offend them [to say so] because we have spoken personally [with Raphinha] and we are in communication, but there are also other clubs that want Raphinha and have made their offers.”

“We know that the player would like to come to Barcelona,” he added.

His agent Deco is also a former Barcelona player and has been in the city this week too, suggesting that negotiations are underway.

Yet the presence of the other offers may prove too much for Barcelona. Even if they have convinced Raphinha, they will likely still need to meet Leeds United’s asking price for the Brazilian or face losing him.