Raphinha suffers muscle injury in Brazil friendly against Australia ahead of India match

Raphinha picked up a muscle injury during Brazil’s friendly against Australia on September 29, 2026, and could be ruled out for Brazil’s scheduled friendly against India on October 3, 2026. He had scored Brazil’s second goal from a penalty in the 45th minute to level the game at 2-2.

Raphinha was substituted at the start of the second half after reporting muscle pain, with the Brazil camp and Barcelona monitoring the situation. The Brazilian Football Confederation said it would provide further information after the match.

A social-media post reported: "🚨⚠️ Raphinha has been subbed off due to muscle discomfort, CBF has officially confirmed.The Brazilian Federation will proceed with more updates after the game. pic.twitter.com/CO2zLt7pjy"

The timing of the injury is unwelcome for Barcelona, whose staff had been particularly worried about the player’s fitness during the international break. Marca reported a few days earlier that Barcelona had been keeping close scrutiny of Raphinha because of how well he’s been playing this season.

Raphinha featured in Brazil’s games in Australia and, because of the early substitution and the muscle discomfort, could be released early from the national camp and miss the final match of the international window. An absence would affect Brazil’s preparations for the India fixture.

In March of last year, the Barcelona winger hurt a muscle during a game between France and Brazil, had to leave the camp for the national team and go back to Barcelona, and then missed five weeks of play.

Brazil are now scheduled to face India on Saturday, October 3, 2026, at 7:30 PM IST at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium) in Kolkata; the Brazilian Federation has said it will give more updates after the Australia match, and Raphinha’s final availability for that fixture remains to be seen.