Midfielder Rakitic commits to Barcelona

FC Barcelona's Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic on Sunday finally ended rumours of a possible move to join Paris Saint-Germain.

The past weeks have seen stories about the French football giants seeking to buy Rakitic.

And Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde went as far as to highlight the Croatian's importance to his side when he spoke to the press on Friday ahead of Barcelona's trip to play Valladolid late on Saturday night, reports Xinhua news agency.

After that game ended in a 1-0 win for Barcelona shortly after midnight, Rakitic addressed the club's TV and insisted he had no intention of leaving the Catalan giants.

"People have spoken about it a lot but I really want to stay here. There is nothing better than defending these colours. I will do my best and that's it," he said.

The midfielder didn't deny the interest from France, but said he had "realized that the best thing is to be in Barcelona and to continue trying to win everyone. I am happy and proud to be here," he insisted.

--IANS

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