Rafinha is the missing piece in Ancelotti’s attack

After several weeks of irregular performances, disappointing defeats, and a lot of criticism of Flick’s work and the physical form of Lamin Yamal, Rafinha returned, put out the fire, and rearranged the house.

Thanks to two decisive matches, the latest of which was Tuesday’s win over Atletico Madrid, he has become the personality of the week in the Spanish sports debate.

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“I love it. When he plays, he is a pleasure to watch, his movements and plays make the difference,” praised Diego Simeone on the eve of the match, in a sort of obsession.

Whims of fate: It seems that it was necessary to lose Rafinha for a month for the Spaniard to realize his true importance in the team.

Not only on the pitch, where he looks more sublime than Yamal, but off it as well. A picture of the Brazilian consoling the German coach after the difficult victory over Alaves was widely circulated. At the end of the match, Flick was alone on the bench, sad and looking distant, frustrated not only by the difficulty he had faced against a relatively easy opponent, but also by the ridiculous dismissal of his assistant coach, his best friend Markus Sorge, over a complaint.

While his teammates celebrated the victory, Rafinha was the only one who noticed the coach’s moment of weakness and immediately went to meet him. The attitude of a leader, the sensitivity of a person who is not alienated, who notices and cares about what is around him.

Rafinha had to fight for everything she had achieved so far. A player of humble origins, a young boy from the outskirts of Porto Alegre, who was rejected by the giants of Rio Grande do Sul and did not play professionally in Brazil, was forced to try his luck early on as an unknown in Europe.

He moved from Vitoria Guimarães in Portugal to Rennes in France, before going to Leeds in England, where he was blown away by Marcelo Bielsa.

He was sold to Barcelona for €50 million, faced significant disapproval from fans and the media, and was a constant speculative figure to sell and help the club raise funds at a time of serious economic crisis. He was almost replaced by Neco Williams last year.

Coincidence or not, Ravenha had the best season of her life. But even with the impressive numbers and captain’s ribbon, he ended up ‘forgotten’ by Ballon d’Or voters, finishing fifth, behind teenager Lamine Yamal and winner Dembélé.

“I don’t know how Rafinha didn’t win the Ballon d’Or,” Spanish journalist Raul Varela said in his editorial for Radio Marca on Wednesday. A statement that reflects the Brazilian’s size in Barcelona after his impressive performance in the victory over Atletico, which shows that awards do not always do justice.

You lack style, but you do not lack flexibility: you can be decisive, you can be virtuous, you can be a goalscorer… Rafinha manages to combine these three traits, but he is also a worker. A footballer who seems to constantly play with this resentment of someone who always feels he has to prove his worth, even playing in a prominent position at one of the most important clubs in the world.