Raphinha reveals he was close to representing Italy | OneFootball

Raphinha has revealed how he was close to pledging his international allegiance to Italy.

The Barcelona winger is one of the favourites for the Ballon d’Or after an exceptional season for the Spanish side. Raphinha has scored 31 goals and provided 25 assists in all competitions for a Barcelona side chasing a La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League treble.

The 28-year-old is set to be a big part of Brazil’s challenge for the 2026 World Cup, should – as expected – the five-time world champions qualify for the tournament.

However, Raphinha has now revealed how close he came to representing Italy over his birth nation. The winger, whose father is of Italian descent, held talks with the Azzurri and was in line to represent Italy at the 2020 European Championship.

His registration was not finalised in time and Raphinha instead made his Brazil debut in 2021. He has since scored 11 goals in 33 appearances for the South Americans.

“I was close to accepting Italian national team call,” Raphinha told journalist Isabela Pagliari.

“I was supposed to go to the Euro they won in 2020. I was basically set to go. So luckily, since the passport didn’t come through.

“At that point, the people from the Italian national team were calling me. Jorginho used to call me all the time. The Italian staff had this amazing project for me, something that really caught my eye.

“But at the same time, deep down, I still had that one percent of hope that I could wear the Brazil shirt. And luckily, my Italian passport didn’t get ready in time.”

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