Speaking on the Official Leeds United podcast, Patrick Bamford has waxed-lyrical about Leeds summer signing Raphinha, claiming that he is very similar to Angel Di Maria.
That is massive praise considering Di Maria is a Champions League winner who has played for some of the biggest clubs in the world, and when you watch Raphinha play, it’s hard to disagree with this view.
The Brazilian has a number of the same attributes as the former Manchester United man, and Bamford has spotted the similarities.
“There was times in training where I would be watching Raphinha and then go back into the changing rooms, because we’re in split changing rooms at the minute there’s only four or five in the changing room because of Covid,” Bamford started.
“I’d go back in and say ‘this Rapha, he’s going to be really good for us’. The closest similarity to him is, he’s very much like Di Maria, I mean, I’ve never trained or played with Di Maria, but watching him and watching the way Rapha moves, they’re left footed, they’re really slim, the fact they can run all day, he’s fast.”
Bamford clearly rates Raphinha very highly.
More than anything else, this highlights just what a bargain the winger was at £17 million.
Raphinha has already shown that he’s capable of doing some spectacular things on a football pitch, with his goals against Everton and West Brom showing exactly what he’s all about, while he’s also earned plaudits from pundits.
If Raphinha can go on to become as good as Di Maria, Leeds will have a serious player on their hands, and he will be worth a lot more than the £17 million the Whites paid for him in the summer.
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