Raphinha faces anxious wait over Leeds United future, big week ahead
Deco is set to hold talks with Barcelona officials this week as Leeds United winger Raphinha faces an anxious wait over his future, according to a report from Mundo Deportivo.
The Spanish newspaper have explained Raphinha’s situation in their printed edition on 19 June (page 2). The Brazilian is hell-bent on playing for the Catalan giants, but he doesn’t know whether Barcelona will bet heavily on him or not.
The report adds that Raphinha is ready to wait for long and he is even ready to ditch offers from Premier League clubs. At the same time, even he now understands, that The Whites cannot wait forever.
Although Leeds haven’t given him any deadline to make his final call, the player knows at some point patience from the club will grow thin, especially with the club needing to make alternative plans as well.
The Whites cannot forever for Raphinha to make his decision. The ball is on Leeds’ court and they must make the best use of it.
As of now, Barcelona are yet to come up with an offer. Leeds are only aware of the interest from intermediaries, which in truth won’t be enough to broker a deal. It needs a concrete offer from the Catalan giants, which unfortunately hasn’t happened.
Barcelona need to make their moves if they are serious about landing him, as Leeds need to plan for alternatives once Raphinha leaves.
The likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool are all keen on Raphinha, but it’s upto the player to make the final call.
The Catalan giants want to reduce the asking price, but Leeds are under no compulsion to sell after they have secured their Premier League status.
It’s unrealistic to think that negotiators at Elland Road will accept a cut-price deal just because the player dreams of joining them – it doesn’t work like that.
Having said that, a move to Camp Nou could be on for the 25-year-old, and the picture will become a lot clear by next week once Deco holds his crunch meeting with the Catalan officials.
The Whites have made some very good signings so far, and the squad is shaping up nicely. The current situation puts Raphinha in a spot of bother and the final answer from Barcelona next week could be huge for all parties involved.
In other Leeds United news, a big club is open to letting a number of prospects go to Elland Road, but not the one that the Whites really want.