Raphinha making it hard for Ousmane Dembele to walk back in

Raphinha has more than made the most of Ousmane Dembele's injury-enforced absence. The Frenchman's return is very close - it could be against Athletic Club next Sunday - and the 'battle' between the two to occupy the right flank of Barça's attack looks set to be exciting. This healthy competition between the two can only benefit Barca and it will be Xavi who will have to solve the blessed 'problem' he has right now.

The Barça coach has never hidden the fact that he is in love with Dembele, of whom he has even said that he can be the best in his position if he puts his mind to it. Under his orders, he has played his best games for Barça and has made great progress in his understanding of the game, his decision-making and his continuity, despite the fact that he is now injured. But Xavi also loves Raphinha. "Whenever he plays, things happen," he said not long ago.

With his goal against Valencia (which was the same as the one he scored in Pamplona), the Brazilian secured three key points for the team because, combined with Real Madrid's draw against Betis, it allows the Blaugrana to move nine points clear in La Liga. Raphinha has been key in recent games in fortifying Barça's lead. In the last nine games he has scored three goals in La Liga (Betis, Sevilla and Valencia) and one in the Europa League, against Manchester United at the Spotify Camp Nou.

The former Leeds player's records are already very similar to those of Dembele. The two have scored the same number of goals, eight, but the Brazilian has two more assists than the Frenchman. The nine he has dished out leaves him as the team's top assist man this season. Both have scored two goals in the Copa del Rey (Intercity and Ceuta) and while Ousmane scored once in the Champions League, Raphinha scored once in the Europa League against Manchester United at the Spotify Camp Nou. The Brazilian has provided two assists in the Copa and his defensive work was very important to help secure the win at the Bernabeu. Due to injury, Dembélé has fallen a little behind in total minutes played although the difference is by no means huge - 1,963 minutes for the Brazilian to 1,862 for the Frenchman.

The Brazilian's performance has clearly improved after a start to the season in which he didn't feel comfortable because for many games he had to play on the left wing. That led him to have a conversation with Xavi Hernandez and from what we have seen it has paid off. "Private talks are important with everyone. It's important to know that your coach and staff trust you. For me, it was very important because I'm at a new club. I've changed mentally, because physically I've always been very good. It's normal to have some doubts when you arrive at a new club. I look better than when I started and I hope to continue like this," he said before playing against United.

Barça fans rewarded his good play with a standing ovation when he left the pitch against Valencia. Raphinha's emergence has already begun. Dembélé will have to make a strong comeback if he doesn't want his place on the right flank of the Barça attack to be taken away from him for good.