Ivan
Rakitic has told many times how he fell in love with a city like Seville, where he fell in love and took root and where he wanted to return and has not stopped until he succeeded.
The Croatian has recounted in an interview on ‘Uefa.com’ how he decided to sign for Sevilla, moved by a crush on seeing his wife on his first day in the city. “It is an amazing story. The first day I arrived in Seville it was late. I had a medical exam the next morning, a lot to fix. I was nervous so I asked my brother to come have a drink with me. There was a girl working at the bar. As soon as I saw her I knew that I wanted to marry her. There was a big European club calling my brother, trying to send a plane to look for me in Seville to sign for them, but I said: 'I already gave Sevilla my word, I'm going to sign for this club and I'm going to marry that girl ”, says the Sevilla midfielder, who then tells how much it cost him to win her over:“ I was sure she had to be my wife. But it was very difficult to get him to go out with me, because he rejected me a lot. I had to work very hard, I always try to work hard in the field, but this was much, much more difficult (laughs), but after seven months he finally agreed to go to lunch.
Seville is probably the craziest city in Spain
Rakitic adds what he feels for a city like Seville, in which there are two teams and a great passion. “It is really amazing, it is probably the craziest city in Spain because of the passion for football. People really love soccer. We have Sevilla and Betis, two great rivals, both in the First Division. The two stadiums are separated by just five minutes. The whole city is crazy about football and there is a very special atmosphere ”, he points out.
Rakitic returned to Sevilla after his time at Barça
Now, after his return from Barcelona, he feels important and with a key role in front of the fans. “Yes, I see that I have a leadership role, but I am also a new kid in the team and I want to take small steps like all the other new players. I have a lot of respect for Jesús Navas. We played together in my first three and a half years at the club, and it was really special to be with him again. Jesus and all the other players know that I am ready to help them, it doesn't matter if I am a captain or not, they can always come talk to me. Helping them and giving them confidence is very important to me ”.