Ronald Araujo may be Barca's official captain but Raphinha, who has repeatedly stood in as skipper this season, is unquestionably the team's true leader.
He's held in the highest possible esteem by the senior figures in the dressing room and also seen as a real role model for the younger players because of his work-rate, professionalism and the remarkable way in which he went from a peripheral figure at Barcelona to the centre of the entire project.
His mere presence on the pitch, thus, lifts everyone around him - and that's why his five-week lay-off is such a hammer blow for the Blaugrana, who are unlikely to even have Raphinha back for the semi-finals of the Champions League should they manage to get past Atleti.
There's no guarantee either that he'll even be fully fit by the time the final and potentially crucial Clasico of the season rolls around on the weekend of May 10.
Barca are, of course, in a strong position in La Liga, with a four-point leader over Real Madrid, but Los Blancos have started to find some decent form under Alvaro Arbeloa and Kylian Mbappe is now back to boost their own bid for a Champions League-Primera Division double.
Barca, by contrast, have been robbed of their talisman at a pivotal point of the season and, as Victor stated,"The loss of Raphinha is one of the most painful Barca could possibly have right now."
The forward insists that his former club still have "the resources to cope without him" but there's undeniably a chance that Raphinha will once again prove painfully irreplaceable.