Ivan - Career
FC Basel
Ivan's bigger career in football started in the Swiss club FC Basel after offers from clubs like Arsenal and Juventus. In an interview with Schalke04.de Ivan said he wanted to become established and make a name for himself in Switzerland before signing for a bigger club.
He made his Basel debut in 2005 during the UEFA Cup against the Bosnia-Herzegovnian club NK Siroki Brijeg. It was also during the 2006-2007 season that Ivan was voted Best Young Player in the Swiss Super League and scored eleven goals. He also received the "Goal of the Season" award for a goal he scored against St Gallen.
FC Schalke 04
On June 22, 2007 Ivan signed with the German club FC Schalke 04. Despite, again, having international clubs like Barcelona and Milan interested in him this was a decision partly made because he'd get a better chance of playing and the proximity to Basel. To Ivan, Schalke felt like the right club for him. His debut in Schalke 04 came on July 21, 2007 against Karlsruher SC. His first goal for the club came shortly after on August 5 in the first round of the German Championships, the DFB-Pokal, against Eintracht Tier.
His debut season in the German Bundesliga with Schalke 04 was an impressive one with 3 goals and 10 assists total in his 29 appearances.
Sevilla FC
On January 28th 2011 it was official that Ivan signed a four-and-a-half year contract with Spanish club Sevilla FC and immediately leaving Schalke.
International
During his earlier years, Ivan played for the Swiss U-17, U-19 and U-21 national teams but signed for Croatia on a senior level, something that had been a dream of his since childhood. In the end, he went with his feelings to make the decision. His decision to represent the national team of Croatia, the native country of his parents, instead of Switzerland upset many of his Swiss fans. His family even received threats and Ivan's dad Luka was reportedly denied Swiss citizenship. Even though it was hard and took time to decide, Ivan didn't regret his decision to play for Croatia. "I am concentrated on football and I don't have time to think about anything else", he said regarding the threats.
On September 8, 2007 Ivan made his debut in the #7 Croatian jersey against Estonia in a Euro 2008 qualifying game. Just four days after he scored his first goal for Croatia against Andorra. At the end of the 2007 season Ivan had five senior international caps to his name, four of which were in the successful Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.
In early 2008 Ivan was added to the Croatian squad for the Euro 2008 tournament hosted by Austria and Switzerland. He made his first appearance against Germany and helped Croatia win after delivering a shot that led to Ivan's teammate Ivica Olic score 2-1. Croatia managed to get to the quarter finals of the tournament but lost against Turkey in a game that led to penalties where Ivan missed his shot.
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Ivan Rakitić. Here you'll find the latest news, info, photos and more
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