Farke has found ‘new Raphinha’ after latest Leeds transfer developments
Raphinha was a beloved figure at Leeds United.
The Brazilian winger joined the Whites in 2020 and notched 17 goals and 12 assists in 67 appearances for the Elland Road outfit.
They were ultimately powerless to stop him leaving for Barcelona for a fee of £55million in 2022, leaving supporters devastated as he was one of their favourites.
Daniel Farke never got to work with the 28-year-old, but he may have the ‘new Raphinha’ after the latest developments in LS11.
Leeds overtake Marseille in race to sign Paixao
Leeds need to sign a left-winger to replace Manor Solomon, who returned to Tottenham at the end of the season after his excellent loan spell in the Championship.
A report from French outfit Foot01 (17 July) claims that the Whites have overtaken Marseille in the race for Feyenoord star Igor Paixao.
It states that his representatives have arranged a meeting with the Yorkshiremen over a move that would cost more than £26million.
Paixao can be the next Raphinha for Leeds
Raphinha was a rising star who had notched eight goals and seven assists in 36 matches for Rennes before his move to the Peacocks.
Paixao, by comparison, notched 18 goals and 19 assists across all competitions for the Dutch side, with seven of those contributions coming in the Champions League.
| Stats (All competitions) | Paixao 24/25 | Raphinha (2018/19-2019/20) |
| Matches | 47 | 36 |
| Goals | 18 | 8 |
| Assists | 19 | 7 |
| Minutes played | 3,970 | 2,663 |
He has previously admitted his admiration for the ex-Leeds star, telling TNT Sports Brazil that he was “an example for me and all of us Brazilians.”
Whites supporters are familiar with being promoted to the Premier League, then signing a Brazilian winger, that is exactly what happened with the now Barcelona ace.
Paixao could be tempted by the path that the former Whites star has taken, as he is now a contender for the Ballon d’Or after a wonderful campaign with the Camp Nou outfit.
He would be a brilliant signing for the newly-promoted team if they could convince him to choose them over their rivals for his signature.
Farke could be about to repeat the trick and have a Raphinha of his own, and perhaps enjoy a similar success to Marcelo Bielsa did when he took Leeds into the elite level.
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