
There had been reports that Rakitic had not gotten on well with Barca’s star pair but, while he acknowledges they weren’t close, he says he had nothing but respect for them.
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“I’ve said my side,” Rakitic told El Desmarque. “My relationship with them was never one of my 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.

“I enjoyed every game that I played with my country and the unforgettable moments of the World Cup will remain among my favorite memories of my life. “Rakitic played 106 times for Croatia, scoring 15 goals and reaching the 2018 World Cup final. Sevilla is due to start the 2020-21 season with the UEFA Super Cup against Bayern Munich on Thursday, after winning the Europa League.
With La Liga having already gotten underway, they will be playing catchup when they play their first domestic fixture at Cadiz on September 28. They then play Levante before Rakitic will return to Camp Nou for an away fixture in Barcelona on October 4.