Ivan Rakitic believes he made the right choice by re-joining Sevilla and says the club have ambitions to achieve remarkable feats.
Rakitic is back with his former club where he was once cherished by the fans.
The Croatian will line up once again for Sevilla six years after leaving Andalusia for Barcelona in an €18m transfer in 2014.
For Rakitic, the desire to re-join his former side was highlighted by the fact that he even took a pay-cut to make the move happen.
After playing for a side like Barcelona, one can understand if the 32-year-old sees the move as a ‘downgrade’.
Rather than see it that way, Rakitic is convinced of Sevilla’s quality and believes they can challenge on all front.
“It was quite easy to choose Sevilla, everyone knows how much I love this club, the city, and the people,” the midfielder said to the club’s official website.
“When we saw that there was a possibility for both parties, we were direct and honest with each other.
“I am convinced that there is the possibility of taking the next step, we’re going to do great things.”
Sevilla are the current Europa League winners and will face Bayern Munich in the UEFA Super Cup. The La Liga outfit are underdogs on paper but expects his side to put on a challenge against the Bundesliga giants.
“With all due respect to Bayern, it will be a very difficult match,” he added.
“However, we’re going to prepare for the match in the best possible way and there is a title at stake.
“We want to show them that we are a great team, what I want is to win with Sevilla.”
With the departure of Ever Banega, the return of Rakitic couldn’t have come at a better time for Julen Lopetegui.