Sevilla took an early lead in their crunch Champions League encounter at Russian side Krasnodar thanks to midfielder Ivan Rakitic.
The Croatian midfield maestro is back at the Andalusian club this summer after six seasons at Barcelona and has now netted his second goal in his second spell, having re-opened his goalscoring account in September’s La Liga victory at Cadiz.
Rakitic opened the scoring with a sweet volley struck from outside the area in the fourth minute of the game in Krasnodar.
Gol do Rakitic ⚽#KrasnodarSevillaFC 0-1#CasaDaChampions #ChampionsLeague #UCL
— Futebol 24 Hora (@Futebol24Hora) November 24, 2020
Lucas Ocampos went on a rampaging run down the right flank and his delivery into the box was not properly cleared by the home side, with the ball dropping to Rakitic outside the box and him hitting a rasping effort along the turf and into the corner of the net.
Julen Lopetegui’s side have earned seven points from their opening three Champions League games and Sevilla news has been dominated by the European form in recent times, having won last season’s Europa League title for a sixth successive season.