Fabrizio Romano has been speaking on the Here We Go podcast about the price tag Leeds United have slapped on Raphinha.
It appears increasingly likely that Leeds will lose their mercurial winger this summer with interest from a whole host of clubs emerging in recent weeks and months.
Barcelona, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal have all registered their interest, with the latter reportedly in direct talks with Leeds, according to Romano.
While joining a club like Arsenal would be a step up in Raphinha’s career considering he’d be in European football and more likely to pick up silverware compared to if he remained with Leeds, going to a side in the Europa League who haven’t finished in the top four since 2016 may not have been what he had in mind a few months ago.
But Leeds will likely not mind where he ends up as long as they receive as much money as possible – something Romano has spoken about.
He said: “So everything is ready on Raphinha’s side with Barcelona but [what is] not ready absolutely is with Leeds, when I read around €40m from Barcelona for Leeds to sign Raphinha, the answer I’m receiving is [it is] impossible to complete a deal for €40m; Leeds will never accept that fee, they want way more than this.
Is £65m a good price for Rapinha?
Yes!
No!
“What I’m told is that the expectation is for the final price to be around €65-75m, then we have to see if the biggest part of this fee will be guaranteed, if they will [include] some add-ons, but this is the expectation for Leeds – absolutely not for €40m.”
TIF Thoughts on Raphinha’s future…
While Leeds would much likely rather Raphinha stayed at Elland Road, if someone is willing to pay close to €75m (£64m), they would have to be very strong-willed to say no, as that sort of money could help revolutionise Jesse Marsch’s squad.
Raphinha had been hotly tipped for a move to Barcelona and appears to have everything sorted out with the La Liga side, however, their financial problems are halting any possible deal, allowing Premier League sides to flex their muscles and lead the charge for someone who has recorded 28 goal involvements in 66 appearances for Leeds.