Rafinha shines as a striker with Barcelona, ​​and Jesus admits the difficulty of adding to the brilliant attack

After Barcelona spent the summer in a fruitless pursuit of Atletico Madrid's Argentine striker Julián Alvarez, the fiery start of Brazilian Rafinha in the new Spanish League season suggests that the Catalan team may already have the attacking power it needs.

The Brazilian winger scored 5 goals in 3 matches, while playing outside his usual position as Barcelona's spearhead, before visiting Valencia at the Mestalla Stadium on Sunday.

Barcelona has a perfect record with full marks in 3 matches, and shares the lead with 9 points with Real Madrid in its new version, led by Portuguese Jose Mourinho, and Real Betis, who beat the Royal Club 1-0, on Friday.

Blaugrana failed to sign Argentine striker Alvarez, whom they were looking to replace the departure of Polish Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres during the summer.

On the last day of the transfer market, he was satisfied with completing the deal to include Brazilian Gabriel Jesus from Arsenal, the English champion.

But even former Manchester City striker Jesus admits that it is difficult for him to add much to an attack that is already thriving thanks to the brilliance of his compatriot Rafinha.

Jesus said during his presentation on Tuesday: “I don’t think I am coming to improve (the team); Because it's really... cool.'

“I'm just here to help,” he added.

It is expected that Rafinha will continue to occupy the position of outright striker in the coming weeks, although the start of the Champions League will prompt coach Hansi Flick to make some rotations.

Rafinha suffered several injuries last season; Therefore, Jesús may help ease his burden.

The arrival of German coach Flick to Barcelona marked the beginning of a new era not only for the team, but also for Rafinha, who was feeling frustrated during the reign of Xavi Hernandez.

With Flick assuming leadership, the former Leeds United winger developed into a pivotal element in the Barcelona system, helping the team win the league title for two consecutive seasons, and earning the admiration of his teammates.

Flick said on Saturday: “At this moment, (Rafinha) is performing very well.”

He added: “It is the best option we currently have in this position.”

Flick criticized Rafinha's exclusion from the 2025 Ballon d'Or race, and said this week that he was not at all surprised by the speed with which the 29-year-old excelled in the centre-forward position.

Flick said: “Of course I expected this level from him, as he is a world-class player. I always want him in my team,” he said, describing Rafinha as one of Barcelona’s “leaders.”

With Flick's style relying on high pressure, Rafinha can lead the team from the front line and determine the tempo of the game.

He said last season: “I sometimes feel that I am annoying my colleagues,” referring to his constant insistence on maintaining high standards and high working conditions within the team.

The winger earned the captaincy this season, and instead of competing with Englishman Anthony Gordon for the left wing position, he proves that it will not be easy to remove him from his new position.

Midfielder Marc Bernal told the Dazon network: “Rafinha is a role model because he helps us all a lot, especially the younger players. He is close to everyone, and this is what we want, a leader with these qualities.”

Rafinha scored two goals against Elche in the first match of the season when Barcelona won 5-0, then scored again in the 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao, before adding another brace in the great 5-2 victory over Rayo Vallecano on Monday.

The question remains about Rafinha's ability to maintain these amazing numbers in the long term, especially against defenses that are more deeply clustered than Barcelona's competitors so far, and deprive the Brazilian of the spaces in which he loves to run.

The trip to Mestalla to face Valencia, led by Carlos Corberan, may present a different type of challenge, but Rafinha, since joining Barcelona in 2022, has risen to the level of all the challenges he has faced.

y Italian Kimi Antonelli, a Mercedes driver, will enter the Italian Grand Prix in a position he could not have imagined two years ago, as he leads the overall driver’s category in the Formula 1 World Championship before entering the race on home soil, but he will start the race from the back of the standings due to a starting grid penalty, and in conditions that may at the same time give him an opportunity to run a more pressure-free race.

Antonelli returns to Monza two years after his first appearance in Formula 1, which came on the same Italian circuit during free trials for the Italian Grand Prix in 2024. But his debut only lasted about ten minutes, after he suffered a severe accident during the first free trial, in a scene that was completely far from the image he is experiencing now when he is twenty years old and leading the world championship standings.

“It was definitely not the way I wanted to introduce myself to the sport,” Antonelli said. If someone had told me, as I was leaving the track, that in two years' time I would be leading the world championship at this very moment, I would have told him to shut up, don't joke with me. "But it's really happening, and I'm very happy, very grateful, and I just have to keep pushing."

The Mercedes driver seeks to become the youngest world champion in the history of Formula 1, and has also become the first Italian driver to lead the championship standings before the Monza race, since Alberto Ascari in 1953.

No Italian driver has won the Monza race since Ludovico Scarpia in 1966, and Antonelli is now seeking to end this drought.

But Antonelli's task will not be easy, after the Mercedes team decided to change the power unit in his car, to avoid reliability problems during the second part of the season, which resulted in him being subjected to a heavy penalty that will force him to start from the back of the grid.

However, the punishment may not be disastrous for Antonelli, as Monza is characterized by its high speeds, and overtaking rivals on this track is relatively easier compared to many other circuits. It is expected that the power of the Mercedes engine will give him the opportunity to advance through the standings, which may turn his race in front of the Italian fans into one of the most exciting racing stories.

Antonelli admitted that his chances of winning seem limited, but he sees a positive side in starting from behind, which is relieving the pressures that accompany him as the championship leader and an Italian driver competing in his race on his home soil.

He said: “I would have much preferred to fight for pole position and start from the front, but I feel in a way that makes me more comfortable before the weekend. I think I will also be able to enjoy driving and racing more. The goal, of course, has not changed, and we will try to achieve the best possible result, but I feel very mentally free before this race. “I am very excited and looking forward to it, but without real pressure.”

Antonelli leads the overall standings of the drivers' category by 59 points ahead of his Mercedes colleague, Briton George Russell, while Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton ranks third, while defending champion Lando Norris comes behind him by an additional 24 points. This difference gives Antonelli an important margin before the Italian race, but at the same time it puts him in the spotlight as one of the most prominent candidates to compete for the title.

The Ferrari team received a strong boost at the beginning of the weekend after Charles Leclerc topped the first free practice, ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton by 173.0 seconds, while Russell came third, William Lawson fourth, while Antonelli finished fifth in his car's first appearance with the new engine.

Ferrari is celebrating the 30th anniversary of German Michael Schumacher's first victory in the Italian Grand Prix with the team, with a special design for its cars, while Hamilton and Leclerc will wear racing suits that include the seven stars that Schumacher used to place on the design of his helmet, to symbolize his seven world championship titles.

McLaren enters the race in high spirits, with Norris trying to achieve three consecutive victories, after winning the Hungary and Netherlands races, and closing the gap with Antonelli in the struggle to defend his title.

Barcelona's German coach, Hansi Flick, hopes that the young star, Lamine Yamal, will be ready to face Valencia in the Spanish Football League, on Sunday, after suffering a bruise.

The 19-year-old winger did not train with his teammates on Saturday, and was content with a solo session in the training center.

Flick told reporters on Saturday: “We have to wait until tomorrow. I cannot be sure today.”

He added: “We have to decide whether it is better for him to rest, or to start the match. I will talk to him and we will make the decision.”

He continued: “Lamine is a player who loves playing football.”

Flick explained that Yamal will accompany the team to the Mestalla Stadium, where Barcelona seeks to continue its ideal start and achieve its fourth successive victory.

He said: “He trained separately and everything was good. He will travel with us tomorrow.”

He added: “He was hit and was feeling some pain. “So we said it would be better for him to train separately.”

He continued: “After training, he said that everything was fine; So he will travel with us and we hope he will be able to play tomorrow.”

The world champion with Spain excelled in the 5-2 victory over Rayo Vallecano on Monday, scoring his first two goals this season.

The loss of rival Real Madrid to Real Betis, 0-1, on Friday, gave the defending champion the opportunity to take the lead.

Flick said: “When you watch yesterday’s match, you see that Real Madrid also played well... They created very big chances.”

He added: “This is football, stumbling is always possible. For us, the most important thing is to focus on ourselves.”

Brazilian newcomer Gabriel Jesus is likely to start on the bench, with Rafinha continuing in the outright striker position, after scoring five goals in three matches while playing outside his usual position.

Flick explained: “Right now, (Rafinha) is performing great.”

He concluded by saying: “It is the best option for us currently in this center.”