Barcelona's head coach has made a big admission about star winger Raphinha, who scored a UEFA Champions League hat-trick in their 4-1 win over Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
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The 27-year-old has appeared to be close to leaving the Catalan giants on a number of occasions since his arrival from Leeds United in 2022.
His resurgence under Hansi Flick, however, has seen him grow into one of Barcelona's most important players as he became the fourth Brazilian to score three goals in a single Champions League match for the club.
Raphinha, who is part of Flick's leadership group, opened the scoring in the first minute of their triumph over Bayern and added a second moments before the break.
The Brazil international netted his third to put the game to bed 11 minutes after half-time, before receiving a rousing reception from the home crowd when he was substituted later on.
Full of praise for the ex-Premier League winger, Flick admitted to having never worked with another player like Raphinha in his career.
"I have never had a player like Raphinha in any of my teams. He gives his all," he said, according to Fabrizio Romano.
"Raphinha puts his heart into it. With and without the ball, he is very good, he always starts the pressing, finishes our chances. He is always smiling."
The ex-Rennes and Vitoria Guimaraes star, who played alongside South African midfielder Bongani Zungu in Portugal, has contributed to an impressive 17 goals in 17 games so far this season.
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He and his teammates will now prepare to take on Real Madrid in ElClasico in LALIGA this weekend.
By Kurt Buckerfield
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