October 7, Beijing time, the last day of the National Day. While fans are enjoying their holidays, Raphael, who has returned from Brazil, is currently in quarantine in Shanghai. If there are no accidents, after the National Day holiday, Raphael will be able to return to the team smoothly.
Raphael was once the most capable player in the Wuhan team's forward line to grasp opportunities, and his goals in a single season once surpassed Evra. But in the past 2 seasons, Raphael has not played much. But this time, he was really coming back.
Raphael has been back in China for 13 days, and he has been staying in Shanghai.
Prior to the 18th season, Raphael played for Urawa Red Diamonds in the J-League, and in the AFC Champions League, they met SIPG four times to win 3 and lose 1. Raphael also became the best player in that tournament.
In the first 2 seasons of joining Wuhan, Raphael performed well. While helping the team to rush to the top, he helped Wuhan team win the sixth place in the league with limited playing time.
In order to position Baptistang, Raphael became a substitute for the Wuhan team. In the friendly match with Nantong Zhiyun in the 20th season, Raphael suffered an injury. After the intra-team confrontation, Raphael fell completely, and the season was reimbursed. In the new season, Raphael, who only has a Brazilian passport, cannot return. But this time, he finally turned around successfully and returned to China.
Raphael is a Brazilian player, born in 1992, the same year as Baptistang. However, Raphael's ability to seize opportunities is by no means comparable to That of Baton.
In the 19th season, Raphael made 15 appearances, including 11 starts but scored 8 goals and assisted 3 times. This includes the first away goal of Wuhan Zall this season, as well as key goals against Chongqing Contemporary, Guangzhou R&F, Beijing Renhe and Huaxia Happiness.
Unlike other foreign players, Raphael is a solid away king. He plays and is more efficient on the road than at home.
The current Wuhan team, gone Batang, left Carriso. There are only two foreign forwards in the team, Evra and Lopez, and Akin has been cancelled. Compared with these foreign aides, Raphael's technical characteristics are completely different. He has balanced left and right feet and is very capable of seizing opportunities. In addition, he and Evra cooperated tacitly, and the combination of the two once became an offensive weapon in front of wuhan Zhuoer.
Many people are worried that Raphael has not played in 2 seasons and his form is in doubt.
In fact, it took Raphael only about 14 months from the time he returned to Brazil for treatment due to a serious injury. The last time he scored for Wuhan in a warm-up match occurred on June 28, 2020. Until the injury, Raphael had been the most efficient player on the field.
In the 19th season, Raphael scored 2 goals and assisted 2 times in 2 rounds against Chongqing Contemporary. In the 18-dash season, Raphael faced Shijiazhuang Yongchang twice and scored 4 goals for Wuhan Zhuoer. The opponents of the Wuhan team in the second stage are also Chongqing and Cangzhou Lions, in addition to Henan and Qingdao.
After 2 years without a game, Raphael's state will decline, and the opponent's understanding of him will become smaller. Among the next 4 opponents, players who have defended Raphael in the past, such as Zhang Wentao, Lu Jianjun and others, have now transferred and left.
Previously, Coach Li Xiaopeng had been worried about the inability of the front line to attack. Now he will have 3 former foreign players who can be used. Neither Baton nor Akin played an obvious role in the front. The combination of Raphael and López in the J-League may bring a different impact to the Chinese Super League team.