Phil Hay: Leeds still confident Raphinha will be available v Southampton
Phil Hay has shared that Leeds United expect Raphinha to be available for their Premier League clash with Southampton.
That appears to go against Brazil’s wishes, who plan to keep the winger for their clash with Uruguay less than 48 hours before the trip to St. Mary’s.
Raphinha would then have to quarantine upon his return, but Hay has mooted a potential agreement with FIFA regarding quarantine rules.
Speaking on the latest edition of his Athletic Podcast, Hay shared the noises coming from the club surrounding their star man.
“As far as Brazil goes, you could tell on the basis that FIFA didn’t impose a ban after the last saga of the international break that there was going to be some agreement over quarantine,” he said.
“Leeds say that he will be back or they are confident he will be back and ready for the Southampton game even though Brazil have a game 36 hours earlier.
“It will be a bit of a scramble, I’d imagine, but apparently he will be there.”
Decisions.
We will be going off the idea that if Raphinha is available, he simply has to play – he is one of the first names on the teamsheet.
There has been less outrage surrounding the COVID rules this month compared to last after Premier League players remained at home.
The Daily Mail have reported this week that Brazil won’t allow their players to leave early, meaning they should miss the first games back.
Based on this, it looks as though there is no confirmation of what is happening so far, but Leeds appear to be confident based on Hay’s latest assessment.
This one is going to go down to the very wire, but unless some rules come in to void the quarantine period, we may still be without Raphinha.
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