FC BARCELONA
Barcelona winger Raphinha issues apology over Getafe red card
The Brazilian posted an apology on social media where he said sorry to the fans, staff and his teammates.
FC Barcelona winger Raphinha has issued an official apology to his teammates, the Barça staff and fans after he was shown a red card last night for an elbow on defender Gastón Álvarez in the first half of the game that ended 0-0.
The match was a tense affair with Getafe stifling the league champions from the first minute, so much so that Barça boss Xavi complained heavily after the game in which he too was sent for an early shower. The battles across the pitch were endless, and the game had a total of 25 minutes added time across the two halves.
‘A lot of you hate me right now’ - Raphinha
Xavi said he did not understand the decisions of the referees during the game, claiming that the referees “told is that they would go to VAR less. I don’t understand. Why are they not going to go [to the VAR] if it is a fair and helpful tool? They are incomprehensible decisions... [referees] allow too much and then blow fouls against us. But whatever, that’s that. Last year we started off the same and look how we ended up.”
Now, Raphinha has issued an apology on social media outlet, Instagram, in which he said “I got it wrong and it could have been worse for the team. It’s not the way I wanted to start the season... a lot of you hate me right now.” The winger, who signed last summer from Leeds United, scored 10 goals and got 12 assists for the side last season as Barcelona surprised everyone to beat Real Madrid confirtably to win the LaLiga title, becoming known for his decisiveness in key moments of the season in which Barcelona broke their record for number of 1-0 wins.
The full apology from Raphinha is as follows:
“Well, I’d like to come here and apologise to my colleagues, the staff, the fans and everyone who follows me on Instagram. I got it wrong and it could have been worse for the team. It’s not the way I wanted to start the season. I’m aware and responsible of what happened yesterday night, with every error you learn to improve and without a doubt I’ll improve from my errors. A lot of you hate me right now, but that won’t stop me from giving my all in this shirt, I’m a culé and I’ll continue to be one of you. I hope to be able to make up for my mistake for everything and this badge.”