Ivan Rakitić

Ivan Rakitić

Rakitić with Barcelona during the UEFA Super Cup in August 2015
Personal information
Full name Ivan Rakitić[1]
Date of birth (1988-03-10) 10 March 1988
Place of birth Möhlin, Switzerland
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in)[2]
Playing position Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Barcelona
Number 4
Youth career
1992–1995 Möhlin-Riburg
1995–2005 FC Basel
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2007 FC Basel 34 (11)
2007–2011 Schalke 04 97 (12)
2011–2014 Sevilla 117 (27)
2014– Barcelona 80 (14)
National team‡
2006–2007 Switzerland U21 4 (1)
2009–2010 Croatia U21 4 (2)
2007– Croatia 81 (13)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23:01, 3 December 2016 (UTC).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 21:04, 13 September 2016 (UTC)

Ivan Rakitić (born 10 March 1988) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a central or attacking midfielder for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Croatia national team.

Rakitić started his professional career at Basel and spent two seasons with them before he was signed by Schalke 04. After spending three-and-a-half seasons in the Bundesliga, he was signed by Sevilla in January 2011. Two years later, Rakitić was confirmed as the club captain and captained the team to UEFA Europa League triumph. In June 2014, Barcelona and Sevilla reached an agreement on the transfer of Rakitić. In his first season with Barça, he won the treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League. He scored the first goal of the 2015 Champions League Final and became the first player ever to win the Champions League one year after winning the Europa League while playing for two different clubs.

At the international level, Rakitić plays for the Croatian national team. Although naturally a product of Switzerland's youth level, Rakitić pledged his international career to his parents' country of Croatia instead. He made his debut for Croatia in 2007 and has since represented the country at UEFA Euro 2008, UEFA Euro 2012, the 2014 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2016, earning over 80 caps.

Early life

Rakitić was born in Möhlin in the Swiss canton of Aarau to a Croatian family of Šokci origin.[3] His father, Luka, and his family are originally from Sikirevci, while his mother's family are Bosnian Croats from Žepče.[4] He has a brother, Dejan; Rakitić has a tattoo bearing his brother's name on his right arm.[5] Rakitić spent his childhood and early career in Switzerland. His father and older brother were also footballers. With such a background, it was no surprise when Rakitić took a strong interest in the same aspirations, even as he was completing his primary school studies. Subsequent to doing so, he began to concentrate on his sporting career, with his family's encouragement. At age 16, he was noticed by top European scouts who acclaimed his young potential, although he and his family decided to stay in Basel to allow him to play more regularly in a smaller league instead.[5]

Club career

Basel

After spending some short time in the youth teams, Rakitić went on to make his first-team debut for Basel on 29 September 2005 during the UEFA Cup away match at Široki Brijeg. He made his first Swiss Super League appearance on 15 April 2006 in Basel's away match against Neuchâtel Xamax. Although these two matches were the only ones he played during his first professional season with Basel, he went on to establish himself as a regular contributor in his second season, scoring 11 goals in 33 Super League appearances. Also making nine UEFA cup appearances during this time, he was named the best young player of the 2006–07 Super League season along with receiving the Swiss Goal of the Year award for an impressive goal he scored against St. Gallen on 22 October 2006.[6]

Schalke 04

Rakitić with Schalke 04, in 2010.

After an impressive showing as a teenager, Rakitić was again acclaimed by large European clubs who expressed interest in his young ability.[5] Subject to such, he was eventually signed by German side Schalke 04 on 22 June 2007, for €5 million.

He made his debut for Schalke on 21 July 2007 in the Premiere Ligapokal fixture against Karlsruhe and eventually appeared in the remaining two matches as Schalke finished as league runners-up. On 5 August 2007, Rakitić scored his first competitive goal for his new club in their 0–9 away win over Eintracht Trier in the first round of the German Cup.[7]

On 10 August 2007, the new Bundesliga season was commenced with a clash between champions Stuttgart and Schalke. Rakitić came on as a second-half substitute and scored his first Bundesliga goal within just seven minutes on the field as his side eventually contracted a 2–2 draw.[8] On 15 September 2007, he managed to make impressions again by scoring the only goal for Schalke in their 1–1 away draw at Bayern Munich.[9] Three days later, Rakitić made his Champions League debut in the 0–1 home defeat to Valencia. He then went on to make a total of seven appearances in the 2007–08 Champions League season,[10] including a strong and very impressive midfield role in Schalke's home fixture against Chelsea in the group stage. He and former teammate Mladen Krstajić were temporarily cut from the squad the night before Schalke's next fixture against Rosenborg due to being caught skipping training and taking part in a late-night partying.[11] Helping his side prevail in the penalty shootout against Porto to reach the quarter-finals for the first time,[12] Rakitić had to miss both the fixtures of such against Chelsea due to an ankle injury sustained in training. He was kept out of action for a month[13] as Schalke were eliminated from the tournament without him.

Shortly upon his returning from injury, Rakitić discovered top form as he scored a goal and assisted another two in the vital 0–3 victory at Bochum,[14] which made sure Schalke finished at least third in league table and secured a place in the next Champions League. He continued such form in the next fixture against Eintracht Frankfurt, assisting Mladen Krstajić for the only goal of the match to conclude with Schalke a positive home season. In total, he finished his first Bundesliga season with three goals and ten assists in 29 appearances.[15] The subsequent season started well for Rakitić, as he played in Schalke's 3–0 victory over Hannover 96, assisting two goals in the opening fixture.[16]

Sevilla

2010–11 season

On 28 January 2011, Rakitić signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Spanish La Liga club Sevilla for a transfer fee of €2.5 million.[17] Upon his arrival, Rakitić was immediately included in the starting eleven of the team, making his debut on 6 February 2011 against Málaga. In next game, against Racing de Santander, he scored an own-goal, but managed to get back on the track and scored his first goal for Sevilla in the match against Hércules in the next round. Due to a fractured foot, Rakitić was forced to miss the last four La Liga fixtures.[18] He scored five goals in his first half-season with Sevilla in 2010–11, starting in all 13 matches after his arrival and before the foot injury.

2011–12 season

During the 2011–12 season, Rakitić continued to be a first team regular and a key component of the squad. Due to managerial changes and new tactical schemes introduced by new coach Marcelino, who was later replaced by Míchel, Rakitić was given a different role on the pitch than the one he had the previous season, when he was used as central midfielder under coach Gregorio Manzano; during the course of the season, he was mostly deployed as a defensive midfielder. By the end of the season, he made total of 39 appearances for the club, provided six assists and scored one goal in the 2011–12 Copa del Rey. This turned out to be his only goalless Liga season whilst playing for Sevilla.

2012–13 season

Rakitić began the 2012–13 La Liga season by providing an assist in the opening match against Getafe. On 12 September, he provided another assist for Piotr Trochowski at home in a 1–0 win over Real Madrid. He scored his first goal of the season on Matchday 5 against Deportivo de La Coruña. Rakitić scored two goals in the opening 20 minutes of the second Seville derby of the season against cross-city rivals Real Betis.[19] This was his third goal of the season against Sevilla's city rivals, given the fact that he had also scored in the first Seville derby of the season, when Sevilla celebrated a 5–1 victory. During the match against Real Sociedad, Rakitić added two goals to his tally, however, the second one was an own goal, tying the match at 1–1 after he scored the first goal to give his club a 1–0 lead.[20] Until the end of the season, he made total of 42 appearances for the club and scored 12 goals for the team, three coming in the Copa del Rey. He also finished the season providing ten league assists. Statistics showed that Rakitić created 100 chances in total, a sum ranking fourth across all players in Europe that season.[21]

2013–14 season

Rakitić playing for Sevilla in the 2013–14 season, when he became the team captain.

At the beginning of the 2013–14 La Liga season, coach Unai Emery named Rakitić as the new Sevilla captain.[22] Since the beginning of the season, he was one of the most prominent players of the league, scoring the first goal and assisting for the second in a 3–2 away loss against Barcelona on 14 September. In the two last games of September, he scored two goals in a 1–4 away win over Rayo Vallecano, and assisted for the draw 1–1 goal against Real Sociedad. In the final three games of October, Rakitić scored a goal in a 2–0 home win against Freiburg, a 2–1 home win over Almería and two goals in a 7–3 loss at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium against Real Madrid.[23] In the third and fourth games of November, he contributed an assist in away 1–3 win against Espanyol, and two more respectively in a 4–0 home win against Sevilla rivals Betis. In the last game of December, he assisted in a 1–2 away win against Villarreal, helping Sevilla reach a top ten position after a disappointing start of the season, as well attracting attention from other international clubs.[24][25] In the first game of the 2014 calendar year, he scored in a 3–0 home win against Getafe. In January, he scored two more La Liga goals for Sevilla against Atlético Madrid[26] and Levante, respectively, while also missing a penalty kick in the latter fixture.[27] These performances earned him a La Liga Player of the Month award.[28]

Rakitić's impressive form continued in the season, with several assists and goals from February to May, including two assists in the Europa League 2–2 away draw against Maribor, an assist in the 2–1 home win over Real Madrid and a goal against Porto in a 4–1 home win. He also assisted in the semi-final first leg 2–0 win over Valencia, which they won on aggregate (3–3), thus qualifying for the Europa League Final. He was man of the match as Sevilla won the Final 4–2 on penalties over Benfica at Juventus Stadium in Turin.[29] He was the first player to captain a team to victory in the UEFA Europa League Final and also pick up the official man of the match award.[30] He was included in the UEFA Europa League Team of the Season.[31] By the Spanish national football league association, Rakitić was chosen in La Liga first eleven in both first round, and team of the season.[32][33] He finished the season scoring 15 goals, and recording 17 assists.[34] At the season's LFP Awards, Rakitić won the Fair Play Award and was nominated for Best Midfielder, an award ultimately given to Barcelona's Andrés Iniesta.[35]

Barcelona

2014–15 season

Rakitić with Barcelona in 2014.

On 16 June 2014, Barcelona signed Rakitić on a five-year contract effective 1 July.[36][37] Upon his arrival, Rakitić was given the squad shirt number 4. He made his debut for the team in a pre-season friendly match against French club Nice on 2 August, when he came on as a second-half substitute for Sergi Roberto.[38] During a pre-season friendly against HJK Helsinki, Rakitić provided his first assists for Barça, assisting twice in 6–0 victory.[39] His official debut for Barcelona came on 24 August in the opening match of the new Primera División season, against Elche. Just moments after the half-time break, Rakitić played a long ball over the top of Elche's defence towards forward Munir El Haddadi, who flicked it into the far corner of the net to make it 2–0 for Barcelona.[40]

Rakitić's first goal for Barcelona came from outside of the penalty area in a 0–5 away win against Levante on 21 September 2014.[41] In the next week's game, against Granada, Rakitić headed in Lionel Messi's cross for his second goal of the season in a 6–0 victory at Camp Nou.[42] On 18 March 2015, Rakitić scored the first UEFA Champions League goal of his career in a 1–0 win against English champions Manchester City in the round of 16 second leg at Camp Nou.[43]

On 6 June 2015, Rakitić scored the opening goal in a 3–1 win against Italian champions Juventus in the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final at Berlin's Olympiastadion.[44] This made Barcelona the first club in history to win the treble of domestic league, domestic cup and European Cup twice.[45] Rakitić, for the second year in a row, was included in the La Liga and European (Champions League) team of the season.[46][47]

2015–16 season

On 11 August 2015, Rakitić played the full 120 minutes as Barcelona defeated his former club Sevilla 5–4 to win the 2015 UEFA Super Cup in Tbilisi.[48] In October, he was announced Croatian Footballer of the Year 2015.[49][50] As an 18th-minute substitute for Sergi Roberto on 20 October, he scored both goals from Neymar assists as Barcelona won 2–0 at BATE Borisov in the Champions League group stage.[51] In December, he was named Croatian Sportsman of the Year 2015.[52] On 30 April 2016, Rakitić scored the opener against Real Betis as Barcelona won 0-2 to stay on the top of the La Liga table.[53]

International career

Rakitić's first international experience came at youth level with the Swiss under-17, under-19 and under-21 national teams, but decided to take up the call by Slaven Bilić and play for the Croatia senior national team.[54] He made his full international debut for Croatia on 8 September 2007 in their Euro 2008 qualifier against Estonia in Zagreb, highly praised by the fans as he was entering the game as a substitute.[55] In Croatia's following qualifier, a 0–6 away win over Andorra on 12 September 2007, he scored his first international goal for Croatia in only his second appearance for the team. He finished the year 2007 with five senior international caps to his name, four of which were in the successful Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.[56]

Rakitić with Croatia, in 2013.

Euro 2008

In early May 2008, he joined Croatia's squad for the Euro 2008 tournament in Austria and Switzerland, where he was squad's second-youngest player.[57] He made his first appearance at the tournament as a starter against Germany, and eventually provided a shot which ricocheted off the post and allowed teammate Ivica Olić to score the second goal in their 2–1 victory. He formed a praised trio of Croatian attacking midfielders with his teammates Luka Modrić and Niko Kranjčar. Though playing a strong role against Turkey in the quarter-finals of the tournament, Rakitić went on to miss one of the three unsuccessful penalties in the shootout, thus leading to a victory for Turkey.[58]

Rakitić continued to appear regularly for Croatia during their unsuccessful qualifying campaign for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, making a total of ten appearances and scoring three goals in the competition. On 15 October 2008, he scored a brace in a 4–0 win at home to Andorra. On 5 September 2009, he scored the match-winning goal in a 1–0 win at home to Belarus. Croatia failed to qualify for the finals after finishing third in their group.[59]

Euro 2012

After appearing in all of their Euro 2012 qualifiers, he was selected to be part of the Croatian squad at Euro in Poland and Ukraine. Croatia were drawn in Group C together with Spain, Italy and the Republic of Ireland. Rakitić started in all three of Croatia group stage matches. After two matches played, Croatia had four points and were facing defending champions Spain in Gdańsk. With the game goalless and entering the final half-hour, Rakitić burst into the Spanish penalty area but could not direct his header past goalkeeper Iker Casillas after being picked out by a wonderful Luka Modrić pass. It proved to be a costly miss, with Spain's Jesús Navas later scoring an 88th-minute winner to send the Croatians crashing out.

2014 World Cup

Rakitić playing against his future teammate Neymar, at the opening match between Croatia and Brazil.

In the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, on 12 October 2012, Rakitić scored a goal from a free kick against Macedonia at Philip II Arena to help secure a 1–2 victory for Croatia. Eventually, after the playoffs, the team qualified for the World Cup. They entered the Group A with Brazil, Mexico and Cameroon. Croatia played the opening game against Brazil, which they lost 3–1.[60] In the second game Croatia won 4–0 against Cameroon,[61] but did not progress as they lost 1–3 against Mexico, with Rakitić providing the assist for the only Croatian goal.[62]

Euro 2016

Rakitić scored his first and only goal in the Euro 2016 qualifiers against Bulgaria. He was selected to be part of the Croatian squad at Euro in France. Croatia were drawn in Group D along with Spain, Czech Republic and Turkey. Rakitić started Croatia's opening game where they secured a narrow victory by one goal against Turkey.[63] On 17 June 2016, Rakitić scored a goal to double Croatia's lead against Czech Republic but later the game was turned around when the play was halted briefly after Croatian fans threw flares onto the pitch. Shortly after the restart, the referee rewarded Czech Republic a penalty and the game ended in a 2–2 draw.[64]

After a 2-1 win over defending champions Spain, Croatia topped Group D and went on to face Portugal in the next round. In the next round Croatia lost to Portugal 1-0 after Portugal's Ricardo Quaresma scored an 117th-minute winner to send Croatia out of the tournament. Rakitić later insisted that Croatia did not deserve to go out and the best team were going home.[65] Rakitić appeared in all of Croatia's matches and ended the tournament by scoring only a single goal.

Personal life

Rakitić married Raquel Mauri in April 2013 in Seville after two years of dating.[66] In July 2013, their daughter, Althea, was born.[67] In May 2016, their second daughter, Adara, was born.[68]

Career statistics

Club statistics

As of 3 December 2016.[69][70][71][72]
Club League Season League Cup[nb 1] Europe Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Basel Super League 2005–06 10101[lower-alpha 1]0–30
2006–07 3311505[lower-alpha 1]0–4311
Total 34116060–4611
Schalke 04 Bundesliga 2007–08 293317[lower-alpha 2]03[lower-alpha 3]0424
2008–09 231417[lower-alpha 4]1–343
2009–10 29740–337
2010–11 161415[lower-alpha 2]01[lower-alpha 5]0262
Total 97121531914013516
Sevilla La Liga 2010–11 136102[lower-alpha 6]0–166
2011–12 3603100–391
2012–13 34983–4212
2013–14 34120018[lower-alpha 6]3–5215
Total 11727124203–14934
Barcelona La Liga 2014–15 3257112[lower-alpha 2]2–518
2015–16 3676010250579
2016–17 122005020192
Total 80141312747012719
Career Total 3286446872811045780
  1. 1 2 All appearances in UEFA Cup
  2. 1 2 3 All appearances in UEFA Champions League
  3. ↑ All appearances in DFL-Ligapokal
  4. ↑ Two appearances in UEFA Champions League and five appearances and one goal in UEFA Cup
  5. ↑ All appearances in DFL-Supercup
  6. 1 2 All appearances in Europa League

    International

    As of 5 September 2016[56]
    Croatia national team
    YearAppsGoals
    200751
    2008114
    200982
    201081
    201160
    2012101
    2013110
    2014100
    201561
    201663
    Total8113

    International goals

    Honours

    Club

    Basel[74]
    Sevilla[74]
    Barcelona

    Individual

    Notes

    1. ↑ Includes cup competitions such as the Swiss Cup, DFB-Pokal and Copa del Rey

    References

    1. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2014. p. 12. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
    2. ↑ "Ivan Rakitić profile". FC Barcelona. 24 March 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
    3. ↑ "IVAN RAKITIĆ OTKRIO ŽIDAKU 'Igram najbolje u karijeri jer sam uz Raquel najsretniji u životu'". jutarnji.hr (in Croatian). 9 March 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
    4. ↑ Sinovčić, Dean (8 May 2007). "Ivan Rakitić: 'Bliži sam Švicarskoj jer sam ovdje rođen'" [Ivan Rakitić: "I feel closer to Switzerland as I was born here"]. Nacional (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
    5. 1 2 3 Sinovčić, Dean (21 August 2007). "Rakitić family terror in Switzerland". Nacional. Archived from the original on 25 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2008.
    6. 1 2 3 "Petrić the star in Switzerland". UEFA. 30 May 2007. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
    7. ↑ "Eintracht Trier – FC Schalke 04 0:9, DFB-Pokal, Saison 2007/08, 1.Spieltag – Spielbericht" (in German). kicker. 5 August 2007.
    8. ↑ "Rakitic earns a point for Schalke". CNN. 10 August 2007.
    9. ↑ "Match report Bayern vs Schalke". FC Bayern Munich. 15 September 2007. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
    10. ↑ Arnhold, Matthias (6 June 2008). "The UEFA Champions League 2007/08 – FC Schalke 04 (GER)". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
    11. ↑ "Schalke streicht Krstajic und Rakitic aus dem Kader" (in German). Die Welt. 11 December 2007.
    12. ↑ Collins, Ben (6 March 2008). "Schalke secure shoot-out win". Sky Sports. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
    13. ↑ "Slomkas große Personalsorgen". kicker (in German). 21 March 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2008.
    14. ↑ "VfL Bochum 0–3 Schalke 04". ESPN Soccernet. 6 May 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
    15. ↑ "Ivan Rakitic" (in German). kicker. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
    16. ↑ "Recap: Weekend German Action". Yanks Abroad. 17 August 2008. Retrieved 2008. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
    17. ↑ "Rakitić opts for Sevilla, Medel to follow". UEFA. 28 January 2011. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
    18. ↑ Coerts, Stefan (3 May 2011). "Sevilla's Ivan Rakitic to miss rest of season with broken foot". Goal.com. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
    19. ↑ "Real Betis vs. Sevilla, 2013 La Liga: Final score 3–3, Betis pulls off a dramatic derby comeback". SBNATION. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    20. ↑ "Rakitic's own goal puts Real Sociedad back in fourth place". insidespanishfootball. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    21. ↑ Talintyre, Dan. "Should Liverpool Target Playmaker Who Created More Chances Than Mata & Cazorla? Transfer Scouting Report". Squawka News. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    22. ↑ "Velika počast za Hrvata: Ivan Rakitić novi kapetan Seville!" (in Croatian). gol.dnevnik.hr. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
    23. ↑ "Bale scores two, sets up two more as Madrid crushes Sevilla". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    24. ↑ Francisco Acedo Torregrosa (2 January 2014). "Transfer news: Sevilla midfielder Ivan Rakitic undecided on future". skysports.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
    25. ↑ Tom Sunderland (3 January 2014). "Liverpool Transfer News: Ivan Rakitic Reveals Crunch Talks over Sevilla Future". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
    26. ↑ "Atlético de Madrid 1 – FC Sevilla 1". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    27. ↑ "Sevilla FC 2–3 Levante". ESPN FC. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    28. 1 2 "Rakitic: I can assure you, my number one choice is Sevilla". Inside Spanish Football. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
    29. ↑ Johnston, Neil (15 May 2014). "Sevilla win Europa League final". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
    30. 1 2 Hammond, Mike (15 April 2014). "UEFA Europa League final stats and facts". UEFA. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
    31. 1 2 "UEFA Europa League squad of the season". UEFA. 3 June 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
    32. ↑ "The cream of the first round". LFP. 15 January 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
    33. 1 2 "The Liga BBVA team of the season". LFP. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
    34. ↑ "Ivan Rakitic Sevilla Football Club Statistics" (in Spanish). Sevilla Futbol Club. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
    35. 1 2 "gala de premios LFP 2013/14" [LFP Awards show 2013/14] (in Spanish). Liga de Fútbol Profesional. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
    36. ↑ "Agreement for Ivan Rakitic to join FC Barcelona". FC Barcelona. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
    37. ↑ "Rakitic will wear Fábrega's number 4". Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
    38. ↑ "1–1: Match between Barcelona and Nice ends in draw". Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
    39. ↑ Atkinson, Tre' (9 August 2014). "Helsinki 0–6 Barcelona: What Luis Enrique Learned from Pre-Season Friendly". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
    40. ↑ Holiga, Aleksandar (24 August 2014). "Barcelona vs. Elche: Score, Grades and Post-Match Reaction". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
    41. ↑ "Lionel Messi inspired Barcelona to a crushing victory over Levante as Luis Enrique's team continued their perfect start to the season.". BBC. 21 September 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
    42. ↑ "Barcelona's impressive start to the La Liga season continued as Neymar's hat-trick helped them to demolish a poor Granada side at the Nou Camp.". BBC. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
    43. ↑ "Barcelona get past City despite Hart heroics". UEFA. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
    44. ↑ Andrew Haslam (6 June 2015). "Barcelona see off Juventus to claim fifth title". UEFA. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
    45. ↑ "Barça make history with second treble!". FC Barcelona. 6 June 2015.
    46. 1 2 "The 2014/15 Liga BBVA Ideal XI". LFP. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
    47. 1 2 "UEFA Champions League squad of the season". UEFA. 9 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
    48. ↑ "Pedro is Barcelona's UEFA Super Cup hero again". UEFA. 11 August 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
    49. 1 2 "Rakitić je Večernjakov nogometaš godine: 'Možda stignem i Šukera...'". Večernji list (in Croatian). 8 October 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
    50. 1 2 ""Vecernji list" Player of the Year". RSSSF. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
    51. ↑ "Rakitić fires Barcelona to victory at BATE". UEFA. 20 October 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
    52. 1 2 "Rakitic named Croatian sportsman of the year". MARCA. 12 December 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
    53. ↑ Roberts, Mike (30 April 2016). "Real Betis v FC Barcelona: One step closer (0-2)". fcbarcelona.com. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
    54. ↑ "Rakitić commits to Croatian cause". UEFA. 24 June 2007. Retrieved 29 October 2008.
    55. ↑ "Swiss sad at losing Rakitić to Croatia". Rakitić homepage. Archived from the original on 29 June 2008.
    56. 1 2 "Ivan Rakitić". Croatian Football Federation.
    57. ↑ "Lehmann zweitältester Spieler – Italien älteste Elf" (in German). Eurosport. 31 May 2008. Archived from the original on 4 June 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2008.
    58. ↑ "Croatia 1 – 1 Turkey". UEFA.com. 20 June 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
    59. ↑ King, Ian; Lugo, Erik Francisco; Stokkermans, Karel; Zlotkowski, Andre (12 September 2013). "2010 World Cup Qualifying". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
    60. ↑ "Brazil 3 Croatia 1". BBC Sport. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
    61. ↑ "Cameroon 0 Croatia 4". BBC Sport. 18 June 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
    62. ↑ "Croatia 1 Mexico 3". BBC Sport. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
    63. ↑ Fletcher, Paul (12 June 2016). "Turkey 0-1 Croatia". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
    64. ↑ Rainbow, Jamie (17 June 2016). "Czech Republic 2 Croatia 2 - match report". World Soccer. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
    65. ↑ "'The best team are going home' - Rakitic & Modric distraught after Croatia exit | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
    66. ↑ "Ivan Rakitić oženio se u tajnosti" (in Croatian). Gloria. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
    67. ↑ "Rakitić postao ponosni tata curice!" (in Croatian). Dnevnik.hr. 12 July 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
    68. ↑ "Rakitić dobio drugu kći Adaru: Nije mogla odabrati bolji dan!" [Rakitić got another daughter! She could not have picked a better day!] (in Croatian). 1 May 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
    69. ↑ "Ivan Rakitic" (in Spanish). sevillafc.es. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
    70. ↑ "Rakitic" (in Spanish). Marca. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
    71. ↑ "Rakitic, Ivan" (in German). kicker.de. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
    72. ↑ Ivan Rakitić profile at Soccerway. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
    73. ↑ "Ivan Rakitić profile". eu-football.info.
    74. 1 2 "Ivan Rakitić". UEFA. 18 July 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
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