Football News: Barcelona accepts Leeds United's Raphinha's £65 million transfer

The winger picked Barcelona over Chelsea to better prepare for life in La Liga.

There has been an agreement between Barcelona and Leeds United regarding the recruitment of Raphinha. An upfront payment of £55 million ($77 million) will be made to the Premier League club from the Catalan club, with an additional $10 million possibly arriving as add-ons.

Raphinha is getting ready to complete his transfer to La Liga and is anticipated to have his medical and sign his contract with Barcelona, which will be valid until 2027, on Wednesday.

After two years in England, he ultimately quit the Premier League despite being courted by Chelsea.

Raphinha has his heart set on Barcelona, despite previous links to Chelsea, and discussions to bring him to Barcelona have been ongoing since Sunday.

The Brazilian had a choice of clubs to join after receiving a similar offer from the Blues and Barcelona.

He ultimately decided on Barcelona, with the agent and former player for both clubs, Deco handling the transaction. Raphinha will make twice as much money as he did while playing for Leeds United.

Leeds United and Raphinha

Leeds United anticipated the 25-year-old's departure a few weeks ago and got ready by acquiring Luis Sinisterra from Feyenoord last week.

After making a name for himself with French club Rennes in 2019–20, the winger initially signed with Leeds United in 2020.

Raphinha also made a name for himself with the Brazilian national squad, gaining all nine caps since moving to Leeds.

It is also believed that concrete steps were taken toward the transfer during the weekend, and Leeds United are anticipating the agreement's finalization within the next 24 hours.

Raphinha, 25, trained today at Thorp Arch. Since joining Leeds United, he has had two outstanding individual seasons, tallying 17 Premier League goals in 65 appearances. In 2024, his contract with the Yorkshire club was set to expire.

Raphinha has been under contract to Chelsea for the previous two weeks, but the player's steadfast pursuit of a move to Spain has ended the west London club's interest. Raphinha piqued the eye of Arsenal previously in the transfer period as well.

Raphinha, a forward for Leeds United, is set to join Barcelona instead. Therefore Chelsea has to divert their focus elsewhere.

Leao, a forward for the Rossoneri, is one of their two key objectives. Leao was expected to draw a lot of interest this summer after being named the best player in Serie A last year.

Leao has one year left on his current contract, so Milan is hesitant to let him go and is still trying to sign the Portuguese player to a long-term agreement. They probably would ask for €120 million.

The 23-year-old is not anticipated to pursue a transfer to another club this summer. Still, the Rossoneri will undoubtedly be concerned about Chelsea's interest, given the Premier League team's ability to offer a lucrative contract.

After Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen, Raphinha would be Barcelona's third summer acquisition.

With the addition of Brenden Aaronson, a player who can play on the flank, Leeds United's expenditure of roughly £90 million on six players should be offset. Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips, who joined Manchester City for £42 million-plus add-ons, have also left the club.