FC Porto had turned down FC Barcelona winger Raphinha when he first came to Europe
He got his chance in Europe thanks to Deco, who recommended him to his former team but was rejected because of his physical weakness.
Raphinha's journey to his dream club has been a long one, with many hardships. After not being accepted at a very young age by Gremio de Porto Alegre, his hometown, he had to leave for Santa Catarina, more than 300km away. Only a teenager then, he signed for Avaí and it was there that he met Deco, which would prove to be a blessing for his career.
The former Barça man was in charge of taking him to Europe. His first choice had been Porto, the same club where Deco had made his breakthrough before going to Barça. But the club did not see the potential in young Raphinha and rejected him as being too physically weak.
He eventually joined Vitoria de Guimaraes and immediately made his breakthrough. At the age of 19, he started on the reserve team, but soon earned a place in the first team. He became a phenomenon in Portugal. Two years later, Vitoria sold him for almost seven million euros to Sporting, who in turn made 21 million euros on his sale.
