On 8 January 2011 he made his professional debut with the B team, coming on as a substitute for Jonathan dos Santos in the 55th minute of a 2–1 home loss against Girona in the Segunda División.

[6] Rafinha made his debut with the senior Barcelona squad on 9 November 2011, taking the place of Cesc Fàbregas for the last 15 minutes of a 1–0 away victory over Hospitalet in the Copa del Rey.

[9] A few weeks later, he was loaned to fellow La Liga team Celta,[10] and made his debut in the Spanish top flight on 19 August, helping the Galicians to a 2–2 home draw against Espanyol.

[14] Rafinha made his league debut for Barcelona on 24 August 2014 in Luis Enrique's first match in charge, playing the first half of an eventual 3–0 win against Elche at the Camp Nou before being replaced by Marc Bartra.

[15] On 25 November, he assisted Lionel Messi's goal in a 4–0 group stage victory at APOEL, which made him the outright top scorer in the history of the UEFA Champions League; however, he was also sent off for two bookings later on in the match.

With compatriot Neymar out through illness, Rafinha started on the left of Barcelona's attack in the 2015 UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla in Tbilisi, scoring the third goal in a 5–4 win.

[19] On 16 September he suffered a torn right anterior cruciate ligament during the 1–1 away draw to Roma in the Champions League group phase, leaving the game on a stretcher after being on the receiving end of a heavy challenge from Radja Nainggolan; after surgery, he was expected to be out for about six months.

His mother Valéria played volleyball, while his older brother, Thiago – another midfielder – also emerged through Barcelona's youth ranks, going on to represent its first team and the Spain national side.