Ivan Rakitić
- Thread starter Barcaman
- Start date
Its official?
ammarfcb
ze special one
yh, some kid on utube said it.
FCBarca
Mike the Knife
I think you're definitely onto something...Seems to be no reason we should go after anyone else that would cost a fortune when he's in our backyard already and approaching the last year of his contract - despite a 40 million buyout clause...I've read Liverpool & Atletico are interested as well
Sumlit
San Claudio Bravo
Obviously Gundogan and Kroos would be ahead in the list, but Rakitic is not a bad consolation price. Forget about the 40M buyout, he won't cost 40M.
The biggest concern I got back every time I mentioned Rakitic for reinforcement, was "He's too offensive, we already have offensive midfielders". Well, Rakitic is twice the defender from the midfield position than Xavi is at this point. Rakitic is averaging 2 tackles and 2 interceptions per game. This is more defensive production than Barcelona get from Xavi and Iniesta, combined. It is also more than Jordi Alba averages for La Liga. Rakitic has also played as CDM for Sevilla on occasions. Obviously his defensive contributions are not the issue.
People might want to look at his 79% passing success and try to raise concern. While this is a far more valid argument than the defensive one, we need to take into account that Rakitic is playing a very offensive role for Sevilla out of team necessity. Sevilla is a direct playing team, and a team that likes to defend and counter. More often than not, Rakitic is leading a 3 or 2 man counter with his passing options being low efficiency ones. He does not have the luxury of having a Barcelona system where passing options are high in efficiency and he does not have the luxury of simple passes to prop his percentage numbers up.
Rakitic is obviously not at the talent level of Iniesta, or Xavi in his prime, and like I said, Gundogan and/or Kroos are the far better and superior choices, but he is not a slouch. He's got vision, has 16 assists this season. He's got technical talent. He can score, has 12 goals this season. And he has excellent defensive contribution. He is a good two way player, and IMHO definitely capable of contributing for Barcelona.
The biggest concern I got back every time I mentioned Rakitic for reinforcement, was "He's too offensive, we already have offensive midfielders". Well, Rakitic is twice the defender from the midfield position than Xavi is at this point. Rakitic is averaging 2 tackles and 2 interceptions per game. This is more defensive production than Barcelona get from Xavi and Iniesta, combined. It is also more than Jordi Alba averages for La Liga. Rakitic has also played as CDM for Sevilla on occasions. Obviously his defensive contributions are not the issue.
People might want to look at his 79% passing success and try to raise concern. While this is a far more valid argument than the defensive one, we need to take into account that Rakitic is playing a very offensive role for Sevilla out of team necessity. Sevilla is a direct playing team, and a team that likes to defend and counter. More often than not, Rakitic is leading a 3 or 2 man counter with his passing options being low efficiency ones. He does not have the luxury of having a Barcelona system where passing options are high in efficiency and he does not have the luxury of simple passes to prop his percentage numbers up.
Rakitic is obviously not at the talent level of Iniesta, or Xavi in his prime, and like I said, Gundogan and/or Kroos are the far better and superior choices, but he is not a slouch. He's got vision, has 16 assists this season. He's got technical talent. He can score, has 12 goals this season. And he has excellent defensive contribution. He is a good two way player, and IMHO definitely capable of contributing for Barcelona.
+1 always liked Rakitic he was the reason I saw Sevilla's matches he might be more attack minded but controls the game well enough
FCBarca
Mike the Knife
You're right Sumlit but you also take into account that passing statistics like that for a counter attacking team will always look different than a possession one, nevermind a passing one with Barcelona quality talent
Gündoğan, if he were going to be healthy, and that's a major if, he's going to come with a hefty pricetag and no shortage of suitors...Unless Barcelona is his express desire, it'll sidetrack the negotiating team that rarely gets deals done quickly...Kroos is a luxury that I doubt we'll spring for or be willing to battle for as again, suitors galore...Ivan ticks a lot of the boxes but I wonder what his aspirations are - I keep reading how happy he is in Sevilla...Plus, perhaps he has some ambition to play somewhere in particular
Gündoğan, if he were going to be healthy, and that's a major if, he's going to come with a hefty pricetag and no shortage of suitors...Unless Barcelona is his express desire, it'll sidetrack the negotiating team that rarely gets deals done quickly...Kroos is a luxury that I doubt we'll spring for or be willing to battle for as again, suitors galore...Ivan ticks a lot of the boxes but I wonder what his aspirations are - I keep reading how happy he is in Sevilla...Plus, perhaps he has some ambition to play somewhere in particular
ebieymjunior
Senior Member
You know who else is a good midfielder? Rafinha!
Sumlit
San Claudio Bravo
You raise a good point. We fans always talk about this player or other, and never take into account the willingness of the player to leave his familiar environments.
However, I'll say this, Rakitic has not renewed his contract with Sevilla yet. Also, this is a World Cup year, and Rakitic will show the world his wears in the big stage. The interest for him will be real this summer. If he ever thought about moving to a better team, this would be the summer to do so.
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