Raphinha clears up confusion over his minutes with Brazil: "I want to play every game"

One misread comment, and suddenly Raphinha's name was everywhere in Brazil. The Barcelona forward had to step in and set the record straight this Friday, ahead of Saturday's friendly against Japan in Singapore, over what he'd said days earlier about managing his minutes with the national team.

It all stems from earlier remarks in which Raphinha acknowledged talking to Carlo Ancelotti about the need to manage his workload with Brazil, after coming back injured from the last three international breaks with hamstring issues. The reaction back home wasn't exactly warm, and the player himself admitted his words had been taken out of context.

"What I meant was that the coach [Ancelotti] can count on me when I'm in good physical condition and available to represent Brazil," Raphinha explained. "Unfortunately, when we're not in good physical shape, we can't play, not here and not at our clubs either. That was the point behind what I said, it wasn't about deciding which games I should or shouldn't play."

The 29 year old attacker went further and made his actual stance clear:

I want to play every game and as many minutes as possible. I also said that if my body allows it, I'm going to give my best.Raphinha

He also confirmed something that had already been making the rounds: he moved up the surgery to remove a cyst in his left ear so he'd be available for Brazil's two November friendlies. According to the story, Barcelona would have preferred the operation take place during the actual FIFA window, but Raphinha chose to go under the knife only after the Barca loss to Real Madrid in the Clasico on October 25. Even so, he didn't miss a single match for the club before the break.

The player himself stressed his long standing commitment to the Brazil shirt:

From the first time I wore the national team jersey, I always made my desire to be here very clear. I never turned my back on the national team, I always did everything within my power. It was always an honor, a privilege, and that's never going to change.Raphinha

Ancelotti's position

For his part, Ancelotti backed the idea that the player's health comes before any other consideration. "The player's health is always the priority. If he's at 100%, he trains. If he's at 100%, he plays. That's how we manage the number of minutes he plays," the Italian coach said.

Ancelotti pointed to the case of Bruno Guimaraes, of Arsenal, who hadn't trained that week due to discomfort: "He's fine now and can play. For how long? I don't know. We're going to assess the situation, we always have all the information we need to manage his minutes, both in training and in matches. Clubs can rest easy when it comes to the national team: the priority for everyone is the athlete's health. Our goal is always to return the player fit to play, free of any injury."

With 19 goals in 14 games this season for Barcelona, Raphinha arrives at this friendly in excellent form and is set to captain Brazil this Saturday against Japan. The national team will close out its year on November 17 against the hosts, Singapore, in another international friendly.