Barcelona: Ivan Rakitic has three Premier League suitors
Ivan Rakitic is attracting interest from a number of clubs as Frenkie de Jong’s arrival in the summer has made his future at the club uncertain.
Barcelona are currently in the process of preparing for the future due to the number of key players in the first team who are the wrong side of 30. Frenkie de Jong is a major signing in that regard and his versatility means he can either be a long-term replacement for Sergio Busquets or take Ivan Rakitic’s place in the starting XI.
According to Sport, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal are all keeping tabs on him in case he is surplus to requirements in the summer. He has a €125 million release clause, although it’s unlikely the fee would be that high. Rakitic has been almost ever-present since Ernesto Valverde became manager, but there is no guarantee that he will be at the club in the summer either.
The Croatian does a lot of work for the team that is often underappreciated due to his poor press-resistance which is often singled out as a reason why he doesn’t deserve to be in the Barcelona midfield. He is adept at breaking up play, playing passes through opposition lines, making runs into dangerous areas and scoring among other things. His time at the club has seen him play a variety of roles such as box-to-box midfielder and a deep-lying defensive midfield role that essentially sees him play as the middle centre-back.
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He is a top midfielder and the clubs interested in him mean that Barca could get a large fee for him which could be reinvested into other areas of the squad that need rejuvenation such as the left-back and centre-forward positions. Selling him would also reduce the wage bill which is worryingly high. His contract runs out in 2021 so the summer would be the best time to let him go as the club’s position weakens over time which lowers his price.