Leeds United fans on Twitter have been responding to the latest claim to emerge concerning Whites winger Raphinha.
This comes after Leeds journalist Phil Hay shared a post on his official Twitter page saying that it is “very much looking like FIFA will try and enforce a ban on Raphinha for not travelling to Brazil” following the controversy regarding the recent international break.
It is believed that Raphinha and his Brazilian counterparts could well miss the Yorkshire club’s upcoming Premier League match against Liverpool after the Brazilian football authorities triggered a FIFA rule to prevent them from appearing. Liverpool’s Alisson and Roberto Firmino are among those also at risk.
This post then quickly caught the attention of a number of Leeds supporters who were not shy in airing their thoughts and feelings on the matter.
So, what did these Leeds fans have to say in response to Phil Hay’s post about Raphinha?
“Joke that our lad is getting banned for not travelling for a match that didn’t even get played. Make it make sense!”
“Madness from FIFA example 317”
“Absolute joke”
“Shocking state of affairs imo (and more so after the other night’s farce)”
“Absolute disgrace that’s beyond farcical. Saving grace is Liverpool disrupted also and it’s a game you wouldn’t expect us to win but could be far more crucial. Ridiculous.”
“What a joke FIFA is”
Looking at the replies to Hay’s post, it’s clear to see that this group of Leeds fans are not happy to hear that Raphinha could be punished by FIFA for not being involved in international duty.
Do you think Leeds could beat Liverpool without Raphinha?
Yes
No
Given how Raphinha has played every minute of Premier League action for Leeds so far this season and is currently listed as the club’s highest-rated player according to WhoScored with an overall performance rating of 6.9/10, it’s safe to say he is an important player for them and easy to see why these Leeds fans would be rather disheartened to see him potentially miss the Liverpool game.
Moving forward, if Raphinha and the other reported Brazilian players in the Premier League do end up being banned from the weekend games, some Leeds fans could take some comfort in the fact that their upcoming opponents Liverpool could have Alisson, Fabinho and Firmino out, which could give Marcelo Bielsa’s side an advantage over them.
In other news: ‘If they sell him, that’s me done’, ‘Surprised’ – Lots of Leeds fans react as claim emerges