New boy Ivan Rakitic hails legend Xavi Hernandez as he tries to adapt to Barcelona way
Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic looks in the mirror of the No 6 shirt to continue the process of adapting to life at Barcelona.
"Xavi is the boss of all our midfielders. For all he has given to football, I am very grateful and content that I can learn from him and enjoy playing with him on the pitch," said Rakitic at the press conference the day before Barcelona take on Apoel Nicosia in the Champions League.
The former Sevilla star also spoke well about Lionel Messi, who broke Telmo Zarra's all-time top goalscoring record in La Liga on Saturday and can smash Raul's Champions League top total on Tuesday night.
"There are no words to describe Messi. He's pure football. To be with him on the pitch makes me proud, something impressionable. You can only thank him for all he's done. Hopefully he continues like this by our side and scores 200 goals more. He wants it to be."
Rakitic also denied that Barcelona players giving Messi the bumps after he scored their side's fourth goal against Sevilla was disrespectful.
"It was not a lack of respect, to Sevilla or anyone. I was not prepared, Messi deserved something special. That is not won in a game or a year. Leo does not like that sort of thing, but in this moment for him, everyone can understand."
