The Barcelona player Raphinha owes a huge favor to the Madrid player Endrick, who proved to be more mature than him in the last Argentina-Brazil match (4-1).
Raphinha is 28 years old. Endrick, 18. But in the Argentina-Brazil match, the veteran seemed to be the Madrid player and the rookie the Barcelona player.
Raphinha Heated Up the Match with His Statements
Even before the match, Raphinha heated up the atmosphere with some explosive statements. In them, he basically said that Brazil had to give Argentina a beating. If not on the field, then off it.
He then said, "I'm going to score a goal against them. Screw them! What do you think?" Undoubtedly, statements that do not lead to harmony but rather to tension and bad manners.
Then Raphinha couldn't be surprised when the crowd insulted him in unison. It's that saying about reaping what you sow.
Those words heated up the match, which as expected was tense on the field. Raphinha clashed with several Argentine players, who provoked him and succeeded. There were many frictions and underhanded play.
Raphinha fell into the trap constantly and almost came to blows with his Argentine rivals. He was lucky that Endrick was around and knew how to hold him back and steer him away so that the situation didn't escalate. Thanks to his intervention, he saved Raphinha from getting into a brawl and being sent off.
He saved him from a big one. Perhaps a red card and maybe also the elimination of his candidacy for the Ballon d'Or.
Raphinha Thanked Endrick
Last year they said that Vinícius didn't win the Ballon d'Or because of his off-field conflicts. The same could apply to Raphinha.
Raphinha, once he had cooled down, thanked Endrick in the locker room for his intervention and maturity in steering him away from the chaos. "Good thing you were there because I was getting myself a red card," he told the white team forward.
Despite his young age, Endrick is showing signs of maturity in recent weeks. Although he doesn't resign himself to being a substitute, he hasn't been heard raising his voice about his situation.
At least he acknowledged the selfless favor his teammate and rival at Real Madrid did for him.