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Rakitic: ‘We will give Sevilla a hard time’

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Rakitic: ‘We will give Sevilla a hard time’

The Barça midfielder says that the best way to win the Spanish Cup Final is to play at 100 percent from the start.

Ivan Rakitic’s soft spot for Sevilla is undeniable. He used to be the king of the town and its attacking leader, therefore, he knows that nothing short of pure intensity will enable the culés to overcome his former teammates: “We play a Final and we have to start off at 100 percent. It’s the last game of the season and we have to give our best, to play in tune from the beginning. And to discuss our desire to win this is not necessary, a title is at stake. We are playing for the double.”

Rakitic admits his fondness for the Andalusian club: “It’s special for me, yes, but I’ll try it to be just another game. Part of my heart belongs to Sevilla but during the match I’ll forget about that and I’ll give my best to win. I would not have liked it if it were a different rival in the Final because I always wish them the best but that’s as far as it goes. Here is where, me wishing them the best, stops.”

“We will give them a hard time on Sunday. We can’t think about what they will do but on what we will do. They will be prepared and will work on every detail. It’s going to be a tough match against a great side. That’s why we have to trust ourselves above all and play the best game possible because we will have to do so [to beat them].”

The Blaugrana squad wants to celebrate the domestic double after clinching the La Liga title against Granada last week: “The league title is the most important because it’s the best competition in the world. We have done an outstanding season and if we could top it off with the Cup title that would be the best. Even though the season’s rating doesn’t depend on this outcome, it would be nicer to seal the double.”

He doesn’t care much, though, about the Champions League Final between Real Madrid and Atlético: “I don’t know if I’m going to watch it because they have given us holidays on the national team and I will be with my family. I wish Luca [Modric] the best since he’s my national squad teammate. I wish he scores five goals...but that they don’t win it.”

Rakitic is not concerned either about the estelades controversy in the Spanish Cup Final: “I’ll be focused on playing football. I understand that the club does what it needs to do. I respect all that but I’ll focus on my job and try to win this Cup. We have had a long road to get to this point thus we have the drive to compete. We will play and try to celebrate the title with the fans.”

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Source: El País

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