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I said that Luka Modric is the most complete midfielder in the world, but Ivan Rakitic is just as important to the Croatian team.
Croatia is a relatively small country but we have large communities elsewhere in the world. as Australia, Germany and Switzerland. As far as football is concerned, we have always looked at these other countries because we do not have an important base to recruit.
In 2006, after defeating England 2-0 in Zagreb in a qualifying match for 2008 Euros, the Croatian federation spoke to me about a talented young Swiss who was playing for the FC Basel with Mladen Petric, a player who was part of our national team.
Rakitique. He was born in Switzerland in 1988 and had already played for their under-21 team. We went to see him, watched him play and then we had a big talk with his parents.
Ivan was then a child, so we left things for a little while and then went back to Switzerland. His parents are great Croatians and, like many who go abroad, they often have more national identity than the people who live in the country itself.
I did not have to convince them of their son playing for Croatia. Still, I did not want to push Ivan. I found out in the first 10 minutes of his interview that you could not be cold and professional with him. You did not tell him, "Listen, you have to make a choice."
I've been hot with him, I've tried to explain the benefits of playing for us, that we're a good team, that we'd really be counting on him and that, even if I could not promise him everything because we already had a good team, we had young players like Luka Modric, Vedran Corluka, Eduardo, Niko Kranjcar and he would appreciate the style we play. 19659002] I told him: "If you do well in Switzerland, it's great, but if you win big in Croatia, it's more than football, that's all!"
We spoke for a few hours and then came back again a few weeks later and he decided to come to us. It was a decision that he never regretted. It was said that I had helped convince him. He did not need much persuasion, but I told him that we were going to heal him, that he had a great chance and that his talent matched perfectly the way we were playing.
I know him well and his family. They have a lot of respect for Switzerland and that made the decision more difficult. These are true Croats, however
where he remained in Switzerland, I have no doubt that he would have had a great career again. He was 18 years old at the time and, at our first meeting, his father told me that he had an offer from Chelsea. The Bundesliga club Schalke wanted it too and I told him that it was perhaps a little too early to go to Chelsea, that Schalke was close to home and that German was his language.
it. With the utmost respect for Switzerland because their national team is doing well, playing for Croatia takes you to another level.
So what does Ivan look like? First, he has a huge personality. He has a Croatian soul but a Swiss spirit. He has that determination and that work ethic, but above all, that is his talent. His technique is amazing. He does not have a good pace, but he has a good brain and excellent first contact. He understands the game.
In the early days, he was No10 and he played in that position for Sevilla, where he was their captain when they won the Europa League in 2014. He changed positions when he was in charge. he went to Barcelona and this transformation helped him to become a complete midfielder.
Modric takes a look but Rakitic sacrifices himself for the team. He is humble and very happy to do the donkey work. His greatest strength, however, is when he has the ball. He has a great shot on him and can take a good free kick. Remember the one against Argentina when he hit the crossbar?
His performance against Argentina was one of the best I've seen of him. In the last two games, against Denmark and Russia, it was not brilliant but we won; He was part of the team and he was the key player in both penalties, taking the decisive shots.
In 2008, Modric and he missed their penalties when we lost to Turkey in the quarterfinals of the Euro. but he was 19 years old. Now he is a mature player. In pressure situations, he has a cool brain, is very calm and professional, so it is an obvious choice to take the fifth penalty.
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