Rakitic rejected ‘big’ offers to stay at Barca

Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic rejected offers from Manchester United, Chelsea and Juventus this summer to stay in Catalonia, reports Mundo Deportivo.

The Croatian playmaker is under contract at Camp Nou until 2019, however the Barcelona-based paper suggests that he is keen to extend this further.

The 28-year-old's combination of power, technical ability and an eye for goal have made him a target for a number of top European clubs.

It is believed that rival clubs were intrigued by the possibility due to Rakitic being substituted off in 25 matches last season by Luis Enrique, even though the midfielder has never voiced any displeasure with this.

Juventus are reported to have attempted to sign the midfielder, who netted against them in the 2015 Champions League final, to help replace the outgoing Paul Pogba, while both Manchester United and Chelsea also wanted to bolster their creative options.

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