This month, we’ve covered Newcastle United’s latest pursuit for Barcelona star Raphinha, with reports claiming the Magpies ‘immediately‘ want to open talks to get the signing done.
The Brazilian winger was believed to be at the Catalan club’s exit door, and that would make things easier for the Premier League side to go and get him.
However, according to reports from the player’s home country today, Newcastle may find that task a lot harder, because UOL say Xavi is actually blocking Raphinha’s departure.
It’s claimed that even though Barcelona were initially thinking of negotiating the player’s sale and getting rid of his salary, the manager told them to stop that operation.
Following the La Liga title, Xavi reportedly sees Raphinha as a ‘decisive’ player for his attacking sector and now plans to keep him in the squad for next season.
The winger has ten goals and 12 assists for Barcelona, and managed to recover from the poor start of season he had following the move from Leeds United.
So even though the Spanish media claimed Newcastle could have him as an easy target, it seems the situation now changed and it will take a big effort to convince Barcelona.
