Raphinha fumes over ‘lies’ about Barcelona future and claims press 'don't like seeing me here very much'

The 29-year-old has two years left on his contract at Camp Nou and has been irritated by the speculation surrounding his future at Barcelona.

Raphinha’s season has been blighted by a troublesome hamstring injury, but he has still scored 19 goals and registered eight assists in 31 appearances for Barcelona.

There has been reported interest in the forward from Saudi Arabia, although Mundo Deportivo has since stated that Barcelona have ”no interest” in selling the Brazilian this summer.

It is claimed that the Catalans are more focused on strengthening in wide areas, either by keeping Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford or through reinforcements in the transfer market.

Another possible addition could be Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United, with Marca reporting that Hansi Flick is an admirer of the 25-year-old. But any deal is said to be ”highly unlikely” at the moment due to the player’s price tag.

Addressing the exit rumours, Raphinha told ESPN Brazil: "Since I arrived at Barcelona, since the first day there has been speculation that I am going to leave this club.

”I think people don't like seeing me here very much. Especially the press. There is one person there who only tells lies.

"The [journalist] who wrote that story [of a possible exit] has already written other lies about me, claiming that I met with the club, or spoke to people internally, because I was undecided about my future [at Barcelona]. That person only tells lies; every time he posts news, it has to be ignored. Almost everything that comes from him is irrelevant and untrue."

Raphinha’s focus is now on winning a third La Liga title, which could be secured with a draw in El Clasico on Sunday.

Hansi Flick’s side have an 11-point lead over Los Blancos, and maintaining that advantage with three games remaining would be enough to get the job done.

"To be honest, what priority for me is winning the league, regardless of the opponent,” he added.

"But the most important thing for me is winning the title. And if it's at their expense, then even better."

There has also been plenty of speculation circulating around Real Madrid too, with fans starting an online petition for the club to sell Kylian Mbappe.

There was huge anger amongst Real's fan base after the Frenchman was seen jetting off on a club-sanctioned trip to Sardinia during his recovery from a hamstring injury.

Despite the club’s approval, the petition called ”Mbappe Out” has gained more than 36 million signatures.

However, Fabrizio Romano reports that Real Madrid have no desire to sell the France captain in light of the growing fan outrage.

He reported on his YouTube channel: ”Let’s not say that the relationship between Real Madrid and Mbappe is broken. Let’s not say that between Mbappe and Real Madrid is over.

”Let’s not even mention that Real Madrid are considering Mbappe exit in the summer.

”There is nothing about. Nothing at all. It’s a complicated moment for Real Madrid, but it’s not only Mbappe. There are many complicated situations at Real Madrid.”

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