Read 3 minutes20 Jun 2026 08:22 PM IST
On an otherwise flawless day, there were concerns over Rafinha’s fitness during Brazil’s 3-0 win over Haiti. The five-time champions secured their first win of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Philadelphia on Friday, courtesy of a brace from Mathews Cunha and an accurate Vinicius Junior strike. As with the 1-1 draw against Morocco, some questions will be raised over Brazil’s performance against Haiti. However, the team is eager to find answers to Rafina’s injury.
The winger was taken off moments after Vinicius had doubled Brazil’s lead, a move that saw him score a non-contact injury. It appeared that the Barcelona attacker had injured his right arm while trying to accelerate. He was replaced by 19-year-old Ryan, who became the sixth youngest Brazilian to appear at a men’s World Cup. Meanwhile, Rafina will undergo an MRI at Brazil’s camp in New Jersey on Saturday.
He did not need any support to walk through the mixed zone after the match, but Carlo Ancelotti will be worried about a recurrence of the injury. Notably, the same problem ruled him out of Brazil’s friendly against France in May, while Rafinha has missed 12 La Liga matches in three separate spells for Barcelona in the 2025-26 season.
An official statement from the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) read: “Forward Rafinha suffered pain in the right arm during the first half of the match against Haiti. The player has started treatment and will be re-evaluated. We will let you know when we have more information.”
National team coordinator Rodrigo Caetano hopes the injury is not serious. “When a player is substituted due to a possible injury, we are a little nervous and worried until he is tested. We all hope it is nothing serious. It is something simple and he can be with us as soon as possible. Rafinha has exceptional athletic ability. And tomorrow, God willing, we cannot all be calm when we see the results of the test. Brazilian fans,” he was quoted as saying by O Globo.
Lucas Paqueta, who impressed at the Lincoln Fairfield Stadium, acknowledged the team’s concerns. “We were all worried, of course, that he was going to feel it more. We hope it’s nothing serious, the worst thing is, we still have to wait for the tests. We all support him a lot. We hope it’s just a scare,” he said.
Rafinha joined Neymar in Brazil’s treatment room, although Ancelotti was confident of Ancelotti’s availability for their final Group C match against Scotland. Right back Wesley has already ruled out the tournament with injury and has been replaced by Ederson Santos of Atlanta.
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If Rafinha is also sidelined for the rest of the World Cup, Brazil will not be eligible to name a replacement, as the squad overhaul window closed 24 hours before their opening match. In that scenario, Ancelotti will have just 24 players as Brazil continue to pursue Mission Hexa.