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Sevilla's Ivan Rakitic faces his former club Barcelona tonight. The midfielder spent six years at the Catalan side and has claimed he would not celebrate if he scored a goal against them.
Barcelona take on Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in the first leg of the Copa Del Rey semi-final. The Camp Nou side defeated Granada to make it to the last four while Sevilla edged past Almeria to seal their place.
Ivan Rakitic was talking to AS ahead of the semi-final. The Croatian might be the one leading Sevilla tonight as Jesus Navas is a doubt for the match. Rakitic said:
"I wouldn't celebrate a goal against Barcelona. I will always carry them with me. Things that were discussed were not fulfilled with me, but there I have lived many beautiful moments. My little daughter was born in Barcelona, I have many friends in the city and a lot of affection from the fans, which is mutual."
Ivan Rakitic moved from Sevilla to Barcelona and then back
Ivan Rakitic was a star at Sevilla when Barcelona came calling. The Blaugrana were trying to replace Cesc Fabregas and the Croatian was the perfect signing for them.
He enjoyed a successful spell at Camp Nou and was a driving force behind Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. However, having left Barcelona, Rakitic has now revealed that the partnership was only on the pitch and that they weren't close off it. The 32-year-old said:
"My relationship with them [Messi and Suarez] was never one of close friends. I believe that's hard in a group of 23 or 24 players. My closest friends were Andres Iniesta, [Marc-Andre] ter Stegen, [Kevin-Prince] Boateng and Junior Firpo last season."
"But I respect them both. They were my team-mates for six years and are very important players. I've always got on incredibly well and have the utmost respect for them. During the coronavirus lockdown, we've all been very close together, almost neighbours. I'm very thankful for how they've treated me over the years."
Barcelona have drawn their last two matches against Ivan Rakitic's Sevilla and will be looking to win tonight. However, their last victory at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan was back in 2016.
