Barcelona icon ‘regrets’ not joining Ronaldo at Juventus & delivers GOAT verdict on Messi
Ivan Rakitic has said that not joining Juventus in 2019 to play alongside Cristiano Ronaldo is the biggest regret that he has from his career.
The Croatian midfielder announced his retirement over the summer, calling it quits on his 21-year-long playing career.
He enjoyed his peak years playing for Barcelona alongside Lionel Messi, although he regrets not joining Juventus in 2019 when he had the chance.
According to Rakitic, Ronaldo himself called to convince him to move to Italy, but the move never materialised in the end.
“Ronaldo called me in 2019 to convince me [to join Juventus],” Rakitic told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I would have liked to play in Serie A; it’s the regret of my career. I have great admiration for Italian football and the lifestyle.”
“[The move never happened] partly because the price tag was too high, partly because I was still at Barcelona.
“I was a lucky man, I played at Barca and then returned to Sevilla and Hajduk. It would have been fascinating, but it was nice anyway.”
Instead of joining Juventus, Rakitic spent one more year playing for Barcelona before then moving to Sevilla in 2020.
Having racked up over 300 appearances for Barcelona and won 13 trophies with the club, there’s no doubt that he’s a modern icon of the club.
While he regrets having never played alongside Ronaldo, the 37-year-old still regognises Messi as the greatest of all time.
“He didn’t even know the ability he had to impress people with his presence. That’s also the nobility he has,” Rakitic said in a separate interview when describing Messi.
“I always told him: ‘Leo, you don’t know what you can do with a gesture to a partner. You can’t imagine it.’ Many of us are here, of course, because we love Barca, but also because we love being able to be on a team with you.
“We knew that with him we were going to enjoy. If he enjoys… the game is enjoyed. It is fun in training.”
“I had suffered against him before in the matches against Sevilla, and then I was able to enjoy it at Barça. And right now, you can also see what he is capable of doing.”
When asked if Messi is the greatest of all time, he said: “Of course. Of what I have seen and what I have not seen.
“It’s a shame not to have seen other greats like Maradona or Pele, of course, but there is only one who started as a young man and has been doing the same things for more than 20 years of career.”
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