Atletico Madrid make contact with wantaway star Ivan Rakitic

Atletico Madrid have reportedly made contact with Ivan Rakitic over a  possible summer move, according to the Spanish outlet AS.

The report states that the Atletico have begun transfer talks with the Croatian midfielder, whose contract is set to expire in 2021.

The Rojiblancos’ interest doesn’t come as a full surprise since Rakitic himself spoke about how near he was to leave the club in January in a recent interview.

The 31-year-old also pointed out the unfair treatment of the club regarding his contract talks.

The ex-Sevilla man spent his time in the fringes under then-manager Ernesto Valverde for the most of this season. He was also subject to interest from clubs like Manchester United and Inter Milan.

Serie A giants Juventus also came close to securing his service by proposing a swap deal involving Federico Bernadeschi, only to be denied by the Catalans in the end.

However, Rakitic is starting to get considerable game time under new manager Quique Setien.

Atletico have been struggling of late in La Liga this season despite spending big in the last summer.

They are currently 6th in the table after going winless in their last five games including the Copa del Rey setback.