Another promising talent has come into the limelight in Europe and again it is the two clubs of Manchester who are reportedly locking horns to secure his services. The player in question here is Ivan Rakitic of Barcelona.
The 29-year-old Croatian plays in the centre of the midfield and has been a vital cog in Barcelona’s midfield. The midfielder provides the perfect cover in the middle of the park for his frontmen to attack while also supplying sublime balls from time to time for them to finish. He also has a rare knack for popping up on occasions to finish off moves by scoring goals from both inside and outside the box.
However, with the arrival of Coutinho, Rakitic’s position in the team may be under threat. Although the Brazilian is not a direct replacement for the Serbian, Coutinho is the club’s record signing and Ernesto Valverde might readjust the formation of his team to include the former Liverpool star, thereby leaving Rakitic stranded. This has prompted the playmaker to think that his time at Nou Camp might be coming to an end and allowed interested clubs to wait patiently till summer to scoop the player.
Although it is unsure, where he would be headed if at all he leaves, the fact that Pep Guardiola is one of the favourite sons of Barcelona might prompt them to sell the player to City rather than to Manchester United boss, Jose Mourinho with whom they have an unhealthy relationship. City currently have Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and Yaya Toure in that role but Pep might still make an offer for Rakitic that the player will find tough to resist.
After a heavy spending summer, that saw the Arab owners lavishly dish around their cash, City was boasting of a squad full of world-class talent. Pep not only had eleven quality players but also a bench that would be in the starting line-up for most teams around Europe. With such heavy artillery at his disposal, it is no surprise to find City where they are now.
In the midfield, however, they are still fragile. Fernandinho, currently the first choice holding midfielder in the team is already 32 years old and does not have many years of top football left ahead of him. The same prediction can be made for Yaya Toure who turned 34 this summer. Although Gundogan is young, he has proven to be susceptible to injury and it is normal to have two players for such an important position in a team like City, making Rakitic an interesting prospect at the Etihad. The biggest ball in City’s favour would be that so much interest in a player would result in an inflated price tag on him, something unlikely to scare the Arab owners at Eithad.
