Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic insists he would love to play under Pep Guardiola before he calls time on his career.
Rakitic has flourished at the Camp Nou since joining from Sevilla in July 2014 for a reported €18m and says Guardiola is one of his idols, whilst admitting that the opportunity to work with him one day would be particularly attractive.
“When I took the No 4 jersey at Barcelona it was because of him,” Rakitic told a Press conference ahead of Barca’s Champions League clash with Manchester City.
“When I saw the chance to play with No 4 on my back I took it with both hands. Guardiola was one of the best in the world.
“He’s fantastic and I hope he is really happy and successful in the future…but not tomorrow! However, it would be fantastic to work with him one day.”
The Croatian believes the Blaugrana’s 4-0 victory over City at the Camp Nou two weeks ago will have nothing to do with Tuesday’s match, whilst commenting on the loss through injury of Andres Iniesta.
“The first game is already forgotten and won’t have any bearing on this one. We know we’ll need to play to our limit to win.
“It changes things a lot not playing with Andres because he is a unique footballer, a different player.
“It’s true we also have players with other qualities, but we must be together to reach a good level and function as a team,” he maintained.
