RAKITIC: "WE HAVE AN AMAZING DRESSING ROOM AND WANT TO BE COMPETING AGAIN"

Ivan Rakitic featured on 'El Cubo' on our official Twitch channel. The midfielder sat down with Roberto Arrocha for a chat about his career as well as the performances of the team this season. He started by reflecting on one of his proudest nights as Sevilla captain: "The match against Manchester United at the Sánchez-Pizjuán was the one of the best days in my career, as it was for many of the people here at the club. Even when we lost against Arsenal here a few weeks ago, the first things lots of opposition players say is that so hard to play here. I've been in their shoes, and it can be really daunting when you see the other players singing the Himno...When you're on the pitch, you feel the energy of the crowd. Each minute passes and you feel momentum building, even against the best opponents. At home, you feel unstoppable."

When asked about this season, Rakitic was confident in the team’s ability to improve and put things back on track: “We’re in a similar position to last season. We’ve done a lot of things well but there’s still plenty to work on. This is a group of top players. We have an incredible coach, we just need more time and during the international break we have been working hard to get back to where we need to be. Luck hasn’t been on our side recently but we have to move on and we have the ability to turn it around. I’m convinced by the quality of the team and am very calm, we have an amazing dressing room and we want to get back to fighting for big things.” To round off, the captain touched on his goal in the Gran Derbi: “It was a moment where it felt good the second it left my foot. Those who see the work that goes on behind the scenes know that it’s something I practice in training regularly and it went perfectly [in the derby]. Controlling the ball in the right way was the most difficult part, but it went very well.”