Barca reborn with Rakitic?

A summer of change is ahead at Camp Nou after a disastrous campaign left La Blaugrana trophyless. Tata Martino left swiftly and in came the new Coach Luis Enrique.

With Victor Valdes gone, Cesc Fabregas seemingly on his way out and Carles Puyol retired, a new-look Barcelona is expected next season. Enrique has wasted no time in making Ivan Rakitic a priority but is the Sevilla midfielder what Barca need?

From a footballing family, Rakitic was always likely to follow suit. Born and raised in Switzerland, it was there that he got his break. A star in Basel's youth team, at the age of 16 he was spotted by Chelsea scouts and was tempted to join the London club but the offer was rejected in favour of playing regular football. It was then that Rakitic took the decision to represent his parents' country Croatia at international level.

Rakitic didn't take long to become a star at Basel and was quickly snapped up by Schalke for €5m in June 2007. He blossomed further with the German club before moving to Sevilla for a bargain €2.5m in January 2011. Rakitic settled in quickly but endured a tough first full season with the club, failing to score in the League, but the club's support never wavered and the fans have – unusually for Spain – always backed him.

It has been in the last two seasons where the playmaker has come into his own, scoring plenty of goals and laying on numerous assists. With some much-needed stability at the Andalusian club, Unai Emery made Rakitic club captain at the start of the season. Rakitic lead his team to a famous Europa League victory and a fifth-place finish in the League, claiming numerous individual accolades along the way.

His scintillating form has not gone unnoticed by Europe's top teams and it looks likely that he will join Enrique's revolution. Rakitic fits the Barcelona way perfectly – a superb ball player with nimble feet, great vision and an eye for goal. His versatility will also suit the fluid Barcelona system and his energy will be a welcome addition to what was a slow-paced midfield in last campaign. With goals lacking in the midfield last season Rakitic will certainly fill a void with his long-range shooting, set-piece expertise and timely runs into the box.

It seems a like-for-like replacement for the departing Fabregas and while there should be no doubt that Rakitic will fit in fine, there is not much to choose between the two players. It could be argued that the signing shouldn’t be such a priority, with other areas of the team needing more attention. Either way the move shows the intention to freshen up the club.

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