Barcelona coach Hansi Flick celebrated the return of winger Raphinha from injury on Friday as the Catalans close in on the La Liga 2025-26 title.
Flick’s team is 11 points clear of second-place Real Madrid and can win a second successive league title this weekend if it beats Osasuna on Saturday and Los Blancos drop points at out-of-form Espanyol the following day.
Raphinha suffered a hamstring injury while playing for Brazil in March, which left him sidelined as Barcelona was knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico Madrid in the quarterfinals.
Barca faces Real Madrid on May 10 in a Clasico which could seal its title defence if it does not clinch it this weekend, and is still in with a chance of matching the all-time record of 100 points in a Spanish league campaign.
“Rapha is a player who always gives us 100 percent, when he’s on the pitch or in training,” Flick told reporters.
“His mentality, his attitude, is always 100 percent and that helps us a lot. This season, he has had to suffer (from injury), so for us it’s important to have him back. He will also travel with us, and we’ll see what happens tomorrow… I think also for the team it’s great to have him back, because he’s one of our captains, he’s positive and can give us these things that we need,” he added.
ALSO READ | Salah ‘deserves big send-off’, says Liverpool boss Slot
Barca is without injured teenage star Lamine Yamal, with Flick saying the 18-year-old is recovering well from the hamstring problem, which will keep him out until the end of the season.
“He’s doing good, so the evolution is good. I think we will see him in the World Cup. He has time, more time, to recover, to come back. And this is what he wants,” said Flick.
If Barca wins its remaining five league matches, it will reach the 100-point record first set by Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid in 2012 and then matched by Tito Vilanova’s Barcelona side in 2013.
“We are only focused on the next match, (but) of course we want to win every game between now and the end of the season,” said Flick.
“For me, it would be perfect when we can win every game, but also have tough opponents. Our job is, in every match, to play on our best level, to learn from the game for the next game and for our training. So this is our philosophy, our attitude, our mentality,” he added.
Published on May 01, 2026
