Ivan Rakitic reveals New England's Super Bowl success inspired Barcelona to stun PSG in the Champions League
'We saw in the Super Bowl what is possible in sport,' the midfielder commented after the game
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ivan Rakitic has revealed that Barcelona took inspiration from the Super Bowl in pulling off the biggest comeback that the Champions League has ever seen.
Just as the New England Patriots came back from 25 points down to beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in that American showpiece, Barca came back from four goals from a last-16 first leg against Paris Saint-Germain to win 6-1 on the night and 6-5 on aggregate.
That they had to recover from an away goal at 3-0 up made it all the more remarkable.
"No, I cannot believe it,” Rakitic told BeIn Sport. “It was really impossible. 15-20 minutes after the game, it is crazy and unbelievable.
“Thank you to the team, to the people around the club and the fans. It was a really special day and it is hard to say something.
“The first game in Paris was hard for us, a lot of people spoke hard with our team but the reaction was special.
"It is history. We want to keep going on.
“We had to believe. 4-0 was hard, but it is football. We saw it in the Super Bowl, what is possible in sport. Today was crazy. This is Barcelona, the best team in the world and we want to continue our dream in the Champions League.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments