The Portuguese coach lavished the Croatian midfielder with praise after the Clasico win in which he scored
Former Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho hailed Barcelona on television after the Clasico. The Portuguese coach, working as a pundit for now, didn’t hold back, singling out Ivan Rakitic for high praise.
“They didn’t play in a phenomenal way, they aren’t playing phenomenally. They were solid, probably more so than in other seasons. They know how to defend, they are compact,” said Mourinho.
“Their play isn’t as pretty as people are accustomed to but they win games. And when you get into the Champions League knock outs and you play big teams in the quarters and semis, that’s a great way to take it on. Pique and Lenglet are fantastic ahead of Ter Stegen, who is better and better each season.
“On top of that they have a player who, for me, is one of the most undervalued in the world in Ivan Rakitic. He’s fantastic in every aspect. He runs without stopping, good in possession, he’s practical, in defence. Normally we talk about the big names but I think that Rakitic only needs to improve his Instagram and Twitter to be at the level of the greats.”
