5 Goals in 7 Matches! Raphinha, Left Out of the Ballon d'Or Shortlist, Responds with a Huge Champions League Win

Barcelona earned an impressive victory in their opening Champions League match, with Raphinha scoring twice to become the standout player of the game.

Scored before three minutes had passed

Less than three minutes into the match, Raphinha opened the scoring for Barcelona. He first dropped back into his own half and passed the ball to Pau Cubarsí, then moved into the right half-space. After Pedri switched play to Yamal on the right, Raphinha made a run from a blind spot in the defense, reaching the pass before the opposing defenders and going one-on-one. Facing the goalkeeper, he made a clever turn inside the box, causing two Feyenoord defenders to slip on the wet pitch, before firing a powerful shot into the net.

At the start of the second half, Raphinha scored again to extend Barcelona's lead to 3-0.

A new role with five goals in seven matches

This was Raphinha's seventh goal in five matches this season after Flick redeployed him as a No. 9. The adjustment came after Barcelona missed out on signing Julián Álvarez. Raphinha has shown intelligence in his movement, composure, and sense of rhythm in this position, offering a different style from what Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres had previously provided, and possibly different qualities from what Álvarez would have brought. With his pace and dribbling ability on the wing, this striker profile may be exactly what Barcelona need.

Raphinha finished fifth in the 2025 Ballon d'Or voting, but injuries this season and Brazil's poor World Cup performance meant he was not included in this year's 30-player Ballon d'Or shortlist. Last season, he recorded 34 goals and 22 assists in all competitions, and he has now returned to the spotlight with a seven-goal start in five matches.

Other goalscorers also impressed

Barcelona's second goal came from Karim Adeyemi. The player who joined from Borussia Dortmund in July scored a superb curling effort from outside the box, his second goal of the season. Yamal scored a beautiful free kick during the week the Ballon d'Or nominations were announced to give Barcelona their fourth goal. Feyenoord's Sem Steijn pulled one back after Jules Koundé failed to track him closely, and Gabriel Jesus headed home Yamal's second assist to seal the victory for Barcelona.

Feyenoord had scored a goal when trailing 3-0, but after a VAR review it was ruled out for an extremely marginal offside. The victory allowed Flick's team to begin their Champions League campaign successfully, while Raphinha's performance raised a question: is he the best player who was left out of the Ballon d'Or shortlist?