The Brazil international, however, says he always had his heart set on moving to Barca.
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Raphinha recalled this week: "The truth is that I had very clear ideas: I wanted to wear the Barça shirt, I believed in this and here I am."
In short, he would make the choice to join Barcelona again, as he did in the summer of 2022.
He added: "Ever since I played my last game for Leeds, I knew of the interest of Barça and Chelsea. They are two great teams, but I had a dream: to play for Blaugrana.
"I did everything possible to make it happen and I closed the door a little to other clubs."