On his debut, the Brazilian had three goal contributions, including his first goal for his new club.
Barcelona defeated Inter Miami 6-0 in a preseason friendly at Drive Pink Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Six different scorers scored three goals in each half as the hosts were outclassed in every department.
New signee Raphinha demonstrated that he was worth every penny of the €59 million spent on him by scoring once and assisting twice. He then took shots at Clasico rivals Real Madrid ahead of their clash on Sunday.
Franck Kessie also appeared to be at ease and was one of the better performers in the first 45 minutes. A-list signing Robert Lewandowski did not participate.
Watch: All the goals scored by Barca against Inter Miami
It took just 19 minutes to open the scoring for Barcelona as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang chipped over the keeper to finish off a brilliant team move. Raphinha joined the party soon after and his first-touch volley that doubled the lead was a thing of beauty. Ansu Fati made it 3-0 before the interval.
Xavi switched his entire starting XI in the second half but that hardly hampered their scoring form as they netted three more. Gavi’s genius paved the way for the fourth while Memphis Depay and Ousmane Dembele also got their names on the scoresheet.
🍿🍿🍿🍿🍿🍿 Six bona fide, highlight-reel-worthy goals pic.twitter.com/UmUsVSqeVM
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 20, 2022
Raphinha warns Madrid before El Clasico
The attention now shifts to the Clasico in Las Vegas this weekend, and Raphinha wants to carry on his scoring form.
“One always tries to score against anyone, but if it’s in a derby, even more. The most important thing is the win – but for me we’re better than Real Madrid,” he said.
“I’m very happy to have scored my first goal. It was a good game. I tried to have a good game. I’m very happy and hope to continue it.”
Lewandowski makes his bow in training
All eyes were on the Polish international after he was officially announced on Tuesday afternoon. He took part in the pre-game warm-up session with his teammates but Xavi refrained from using him in the match.
This means that Lewandowski might make his debut in El Clasico, which would be a momentous occasion for the former Bayern Munich forward.
Finally, a glimpse of @lewy_official in training modehttps://t.co/UMlfrcrzV7
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 20, 2022
