Barcelona secured a dominant 4-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. Rafinha opened the scoring, followed by a brace from Robert Lewandowski, and Lamine Yamal sealed the win with the final goal.
However, Rafinha’s goal at the Olympic Stadium sparked debate within the Barcelona camp. Controversy arose over whether the Brazilian actually stole the goal from young teammate Pau Cubarsí.
In the 25th minute, Cubarsí’s shot was about to cross the goal line when Rafinha got the final touch. As a result, the goal was officially credited to Rafinha instead of Cubarsí. Had Rafinha not intervened, the 18-year-old Spaniard would have netted his first-ever Champions League goal a milestone that slipped away in that moment.
Rafinha had some concern about his opening goal, as VAR reviewed whether he was offside when he touched Pau Cubarsí’s shot. Fortunately for Barcelona, the decision went in their favor, and the goal stood. After the match, Rafinha apologized to Cubarsí.
Rafinha ( 1-Goal / 1-Asist )
The 28-year-old told reporters, “I was a bit worried the first goal might be offside. Thankfully, it counted. I apologized to Cubarsí he told me not to worry and said he’d take it as an assist. I thought the ball was going wide, so I just reacted instinctively.”
It marked Rafinha’s 12th goal of the Champions League season more than any other player. He also assisted goals for Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal, bringing his assist tally to seven. Rafinha has matched Lionel Messi’s best season tally for Barcelona, contributing to 19 goals this campaign (goals + assists).
Speaking after the match, Rafinha said, “I love playing alongside top players. We have a great understanding on the pitch, and that makes a big difference. We’re putting up great numbers and want to keep pushing forward.”
Barcelona’s emphatic first-leg win has put them within touching distance of the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2019. The Spanish giants could face either Bayern Munich or Inter Milan in the final.
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