Rakitic: "I understand the situation, but I'm not a sack of potatoes that you can just do anything with ... I want to be somewhere I feel wanted."
Monday 13 April 2020 13:43, UK
Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic insists he controls his future and says he is "not a sack of potatoes you can do anything with".
Barcelona wanted to move the Croatia international onto French champions Paris Saint-Germain last year as part of a deal that would have seen Neymar return to the Nou Camp.
But Rakitic, who has won 13 major honours since joining Barcelona from Sevilla in 2014, turned down the move, and has now told Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo: "I understand the situation, but I'm not a sack of potatoes that you can just do anything with.
"I want to be somewhere I feel wanted, respected and needed. If that's here then I'll be delighted, but if it's somewhere else, I'll be the one who decides where, not anyone else.
"Last year was the best of the six I've had here and I was annoyed with how I was treated. I was very surprised and I didn't understand it."
Rakitic was a regular in Barcelona's midfield until this season, with the arrival of Frenkie de Jong meaning the 32-year-old has started just 10 La Liga matches.
"The results have not been the best and I haven't played much, that is why I felt hurt," Rakitic, whose contract expires in 2021, continued.
"I had a very strange first half of the season, it was very uncomfortable and surprising for me. I hope I can finish this last year of my contract."
Barcelona are currently top of La Liga, which is suspended indefinitely because of the global coronavirus pandemic.
However, their strong league position has not stopped players such as Rakitic from speaking out against the club.
Last month, Lionel Messi accused people at the Nou Camp of leaking stories to the press to try to pressure the squad into accepting pay cuts while the league is shut down.
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