Ivan Rakitić
Ivan Rakitić (Croatian pronunciation: [ǐʋan rǎkititɕ]; born 10 March 1988) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Saudi Pro League club Al-Shabab. Born in Switzerland, he played for the Croatia national team.
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Rakitić with Sevilla in 2020 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Ivan Rakitić | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 10 March 1988 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Rheinfelden, Switzerland | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Al-Shabab | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 30 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1995 | Möhlin-Riburg | ||||||||||||||||
| 1995–2005 | FC Basel | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Nordstern Basel | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | FC Basel II | 21 | (9) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | FC Basel | 34 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | Schalke 04 | 97 | (12) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011–2014 | Sevilla | 117 | (25) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014–2020 | Barcelona | 200 | (25) | ||||||||||||||
| 2020–2024 | Sevilla | 121 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Al-Shabab | 5 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Switzerland U16 | 10 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Switzerland U17 | 12 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Switzerland U19 | 16 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Switzerland U21 | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | Croatia U21 | 4 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2019 | Croatia | 106 | (15) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:27, 30 March 2024 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||
Rakitić started his professional career at Basel and spent two seasons with them before he was signed by Schalke 04. After spending three-and-a-half seasons in the Bundesliga, he was signed by Sevilla in January 2011. Two years later, Rakitić was confirmed as the club captain and captained the team to UEFA Europa League triumph. In June 2014, Barcelona and Sevilla reached an agreement on the transfer of Rakitić. In his first season with Barça, he won the treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League. He scored the first goal of the 2015 Champions League final and became the first player ever to win the Champions League a year after winning the Europa League while playing for two clubs. After appearing in 310 games and winning ten more trophies with Barcelona, Rakitić returned to Sevilla in 2020 and won the Europa League again in the 2023 UEFA Europa League final.
Born in Switzerland to Croatian parents from Yugoslavia, Rakitić played for Switzerland at youth level, but decided to represent Croatia at senior level. He made his debut for the Croatia national team in 2007 and has since represented the country at UEFA Euro 2008, 2012 and 2016, and the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cup, reaching the final of the latter. He retired from international duty in September 2020, having made 106 appearances. At the time of his retirement, he was the fourth most capped player in the history of Croatia.