It hasn’t happened for 13 years! Raphinha matches Messi’s achievement

Raphinha has made a flying start to the season with Barcelona and has already written his name into the Catalan club’s history. In the fourth-round La Liga clash with Valencia, the Brazilian winger scored his sixth league goal of the campaign to make it 3-0 to his side.

According to MisterChip, Raphinha has become just the eighth player in Barcelona’s history to score six or more goals in the club’s first four La Liga matches of a season.

What makes the achievement particularly notable is that Lionel Messi features on the list twice. The Argentine forward reached six goals after the opening four rounds in the 2012/13 and 2013/14 seasons. Raphinha has now matched the legendary Barcelona captain’s feat.

Only Mariano Martín in the 1943/44 season (8), César in the 1948/49 and 1950/51 seasons (7 each), and László Kubala in the 1953/54 season (8) scored more than six goals during this period.

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Raphinha has therefore joined an elite group of legendary Barcelona goalscorers. Six goals in the opening four matches is a feat that, in the 21st century, had previously been achieved only by Messi.