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Raphinha puts Barcelona captaincy controversy to rest in Mallorca clash

After failing to do so in the previous three games, FC Barcelona were finally able to get a victory in La Liga, as they beat Mallorca with a 5-1 scoreline at Son Moix.

This was a much-needed win, not only because Barcelona had lost 8 points in their previous 3 games, but also because their inability to win matches was impacting the morale of the group and generating unnecessary controversies.

One such controversy arose in the match against Las Palmas, as Raphinha, who had started the game with the armband, continued to keep the band even after Frenkie de Jong, who is higher up in the hierarchy of captains, stepped on the pitch.

However, as SPORT has noted, this controversy was nipped in the bud in last night’s game against Mallorca, as this time Raphinha was careful enough to hand over the armband to Frenkie de Jong as the Dutchman made his way to the pitch.

Furthermore, speaking after the game, Raphinha expressed his clear admiration for Frenkie de Jong as captain and praised his performance against Mallorca:

“Frenkie truly deserves it; he works so hard and helps us both on and off the field. He’s one of our captains, and we have enormous affection for him. We’re all thrilled in the dressing room for his performance.”

De Jong was actually quite lively in this game, something that has not been the case for most of his appearances since his return from injury. He scored his first goal of the season and also provided his first assist of the season in the few minutes he got at the end of the game.

Hopefully, this performance will restore his confidence, which he has been missing for quite some time now, and he continue to build on this performance in the matches to come.