Raphinha confirms why he rejected Chelsea offer in 2022

Cameron Smith

25 Nov 2025 04:52 CST
3 min read

Barcelona winger Raphinha has confirmed why he rejected Chelsea in favour of completing a move to Camp Nou back in 2022.

Article continues under the video

The Brazil international was heavily linked with a big-money move to Stamford Bridge following a stellar second season at Leeds United and it’s understood that Chelsea saw an official offer accepted by the Elland Road outfit.

Current ETV

Raphinha

F, M (L), AM (R)

Barcelona

Raphinha

F, M (L), AM (R)

Barcelona

ETV Range

€93.8M - €114.7M

The Blues were successful with an initial bid worth around €62 million, plus add-ons, but they were unable to agree personal terms with Raphinha and they ultimately missed out on his signature after Barcelona hijacked the deal.

Since arriving in La Liga, Raphinha has established himself as one of the best players in world football and he enjoyed an excellent 2024-25 campaign, notching 34 goals and 26 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for Hansi Flick’s side.

The 28-year-old has suffered an injury-hit start to the new season, but he is back in contention to play a key role as Barcelona travel to face Chelsea in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Raphinha confirms why he rejected Chelsea

Speaking ahead of the clash, Raphinha was asked about his failed transfer to Stamford Bridge back in 2022.

“As of the last game for Leeds I knew about Barca's interest and that of Chelsea,” the Brazil star, who has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €104.3 million, told reporters (via the official Barcelona club website).

“In my head my dream was to play for Barca. They are two great clubs but I closed my eyes to other offers.”

After learning that Raphinha was destined for Barcelona, Chelsea moved quickly to finalise the signing of Raheem Sterling from Manchester City, while they subsequently added Mykhailo Mudryk and Noni Madueke to their ranks in January 2023.

However, Madueke left west London to join Arsenal this summer and both Sterling and Mudryk haven’t played for Chelsea this season.

The former is expected to leave the club next year after being placed in the ‘Bomb Squad’ for two consecutive summer transfer windows, while the latter is suspended from all football activity after failing a drugs test.

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•App Store