Reports suggest Cristiano Ronaldo phoned Barcelona ace in attempt to set up Juventus transfer

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Sometimes it just makes sense to let a player move on. Of course the club will want to try and get as much money as possible when they sell someone, but getting too greedy can lead to an unhappy player and an expensive squad member to sit on the bench.

Ivan Rakitic has been brilliant for Barcelona since arriving in 2014, but you started to get the feeling that his time was up and the club was ready to move on to other midfielders. A move to Juventus could’ve made sense for everyone.

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According to a report in 24Sata, Juventus wanted him so much that Cristiano Ronaldo phoned the Croatian to convince him to make the move and assured the Barca ace that the Juve dressing room wanted him too. They go on to suggest Rakitic was open to the move, but Barca’s asking price of €50m scuppered any chances of a deal.

He’s made five appearances in La Liga this season, but mostly as a sub as his playing time amounts to around 156 minutes. The story goes on to say that he seems to be upset that he’s not a regular feature in the first team so a move could make sense for him just now.

Ronaldo wanted Rakitic at Juve

Juventus are already stocked in central midfield so that might not be the best destination for him. He’s still only 31 so there’s time for one more big move where he can still be a first team regular, but it remains to be seen if Barca would be willing to let him leave in January.

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