Ivan Rakitic the unheralded star of Luis Enrique's Barcelona
Wednesday 16 March 2016 19:30, UK
Ahead of Arsenal's Champions League last-16 second leg clash with Barcelona, our friends at WhoScored.com look at the stats behind Ivan Rakitic's importance to the Catalans...
When football fans think of Barcelona, images of Lionel Messi slaloming through the defence, Luis Suarez finding the net and Neymar making a mockery of opponents spring to mind. Between them, the trio have scored 106 competitive goals for the Blaugrana this season, emphasising just how ruthless and efficient the striking triumvirate have become.
However, the trio are built on a bedrock of consistency, with those behind them perhaps taken for granted while 'MSN' wreak havoc in the final third. Gerard Pique has re-established himself as one of the finest centre-backs in the game, while the midfield trio of Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic continue to draw the plaudits and rightly so. It's feasible to suggest, however, that the former pairing receive a larger share of the adulation than the latter.
Rakitic has become a first-team regular since his arrival from Sevilla in 2014. Alongside Iniesta, the Croatia international provides the driving force from deep to help bridge the gap between the midfield and attack while Busquets anchors the side, helping to maintain Barcelona's dominance in Spain and Europe. A WhoScored rating of 7.10 may be the sixth highest of all players for Barcelona, but Rakitic is often the unheralded star of the midfield.
Capable of providing the offensive thrust from deep or helping to limit opposition attacks against the Barcelona goal, it's safe to say the 28-year-old is the ideal all-action midfielder to meet Luis Enrique's demands. Rakitic gives his all in order to help drive the team to victory, and his physical exertions are such that he has only played the full 90 minutes 25 times in 59 league appearances for the club.
Yet, with Rakitic in the side, Barcelona are a far more cohesive unit in the middle of the park. The La Liga and European champions have lost only two of the 45 league games Rakitic has started and they have a better win ratio with him in the starting XI (82.2 per cent) than without him (77.3 per cent). Barcelona also average more goals per game (three) and concede fewer (0.56) with the Croatian starting than when he does not (2.68 and 0.82, respectively).
His defensive strength is an underrated trait to his game. Only Sergio Busquets (135) and Javier Mascherano (102) have made more tackles and interceptions combined than Rakitic (89) of all Barcelona players in La Liga this season, while the latter ranks third for possession won in the midfield third (68) of every player at the club this term.
His supreme energy levels mean he is able to win the ball for his side high up the pitch, allowing Barcelona to catch opponents on the break on the rare occasions they do look to take the game to the Spanish giants.
Barcelona are averaging more possession (62.3 per cent) than any other team in La Liga this season, so the need for a player to swiftly win the ball back for his side is crucial to maintaining their relentless tempo. However, he isn't one to simply pass the buck when he does win the ball, instead exploiting the space in front of him to go for goal.
An average of 1.1 shots per game is bettered only by Barcelona's forward trio and highlights how frequently Rakitic is willing to test the opposition goalkeeper when the opportunity presents itself.
Against Arsenal on Wednesday night, though, space could well be at a premium, with the Gunners expected to adopt a more reserved approach in order to hit Barcelona on the counter attack at Camp Nou. As such, the Barcelona midfield needs to maintain their focus over the 90 minutes to avoid being caught out by their Premier League counterparts and book their place in the next round of the Champions League.
Having developed a statistically calculated WhoScored.com strength of 'concentration', though, Rakitic is not one to lose focus on the task at hand. If he meets his usual standards, Barcelona should stroll to the quarter-finals of Europe's elite competition in their bid to become the first team to defend their Champions League crown since the competition's restructure in 1992.
All statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, where you can find live in-game data as well as player and team ratings. You can follow scores, statistics, live player and team ratings with their free app.
