Ivan Rakitic, Luis Enrique’s right-hand man

The FC Barcelona squad is replete with star players who shine in every game. However, if there is one man who Luis Enrique has placed his full trust in, it is Ivan Rakitic, and the statistics back it up. The Swiss-born footballer is the member of Luis Enrique’s squad who has played the most matches since the Spaniard took the reins. The midfielder has appeared in a total of 87 games over the two seasons in which Luis Enrique has been in charge.

In the first season (2014-15), Rakitic played in 51 matches. In the Liga BBVA, he played a total of 32 games, scoring five goals and providing eight assists. He also appeared in 12 UEFA Champions League games and seven Copa del Rey matches.

To those 51 games from last season, he has added another 36 so far in the 2015-16 campaign. In the Liga BBVA, he has played 21 times and scored two goals, netting another two in the six UEFA Champions League matches which he has played in. He has also taken part in four Copa del Rey games, another two in the Spanish Super Cup, two in the UEFA Club World Cup, as well as playing in the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla FC.

That makes for a total of 87 games in two seasons, and also makes Rakitic the player who has made the most appearances during the Luis Enrique era. The top three players used by Luis Enrique are Raktic, Leo Messi (84 matches) and Sergio Busquets (81 matches).