From Barcelona to Saudi Arabia? Raphinha has a lucrative offer on the table, Al Hilal wants to send unbelievable money to Catalonia

Is there going to be a surprise departure to Saudi Arabia? Barcelona star Raphinha could be heading to the Saudi Pro League. Local club Al Hilal is ready to spend big this summer, willing to pay £86 million for the Brazilian winger.

A few hours ago, the British daily The Sun quoted information from the Spanish daily Sport that Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal is planning to bring Barcelona’s star Brazilian winger in the summer.

Raphinha is under contract at the Catalan big club until the end of June 2027, with his market value currently standing at €50 million, according to the renowned website Transfermarkt.

The aforementioned sources speak of a sum far in excess of this market value. Al Hilal is ready to send £86 million, or over €100 million, to Catalonia in the summer. This would be a solid injection for Barcelona at a time of financial problems.

That’s why this particular report, although still more speculative, has to be taken seriously. On the other hand, the Brazilian winger is still only 27 years old and going to Saudi Arabia will probably not help him much in terms of pure sport.

But as we already know, he wouldn’t be the only star footballer to head to the Saudi Pro League in recent times. The Saudi Arabian top flight just spent over £300 million (€350 million) on new players in the last transfer window.

Raphinha next to join the party?

One of the most high-profile new signings was, of course, Neymar, who transferred to the Saudi Pro League from Paris Saint-Germain for £77.6 million (€90.5 million).

Saudi clubs also signed Aleksandar Mitrovic, Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Kalidou Koulibaly, Renan Lodi and Malcom, to name a few.

Raphinha transferred to Barcelona in the summer of 2022, from Leeds for 58 million euros. In a Barcelona jersey, he has so far appeared in 78 matches, in which he scored 15 goals and assisted in another 22.

Source: The Sun, Transfermarkt