Nemanja Vidić vs Ivan Rakitić: Stats Compared
Centre-Back, Serbia (born 1981, retired 2016) · Central Midfielder, Croatia (born 1988, retired 2023)
Nemanja Vidić and Ivan Rakitić represent two answers to the same question: how do you define a great? They occupied different roles, which makes a like-for-like verdict a careful exercise. Nemanja Vidić finishes with 29 career goals from 518 games — a 0.06 strike rate — against Ivan Rakitić's 90 from 700 at 0.13 per match. Assists were not reliably tracked for much of their careers, which makes the playmaking comparison an imperfect one; where records exist, Nemanja Vidić is credited with 0 and Ivan Rakitić with 90. The honours ledger favours Nemanja Vidić with 8 major trophies (5× Premier League (2007–2013)) against Ivan Rakitić's 6 (1× UEFA Champions League (2015)). The centre-back duties of Nemanja Vidić leaned resolute; the central midfielder responsibilities of Ivan Rakitić leaned intelligent. The wider career context matters too: Nemanja Vidić peaked around 2009 after representing Red Star Belgrade, Spartak Moscow, Manchester United, Inter, while Ivan Rakitić's defining level came around 2015 across Basel, Schalke 04, Sevilla, Barcelona, Sevilla, Hajduk Split. Each, in his own way, set a standard the other is measured against.
179 words · comparison angle: role
Player profiles
Nemanja Vidić is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Widely considered as one of the greatest defenders of all time, Vidić is best known for his time at Manchester United, where he won 15 trophies and served as club captain. He is one of only five players to win the Premier League Player of the Season award twice, alongside Thierry Henry, Kevin De Bruyne, Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah.
“A fearless centre-back who dominated the air and treated every duel as a personal contest.”
A key architect of Barcelona's 2015 treble and Croatia's run to the 2018 World Cup final, Rakitić combined tireless work rate with excellent passing range.
“A tireless, technically composed box-to-box midfielder whose range of passing linked defence and attack seamlessly.”
Head-to-head stats
Career goals by season
Representative career seasons — goals per season for each player across their documented clubs.
Attribute radar
Attribute ratings are peak-era, 0–100. Different positions naturally skew the profile.
Attribute comparison
Trophy breakdown
- 5× Premier League (2007–2013)
- 1× UEFA Champions League (2015)
- 1× UEFA Europa League (2014)
- 4× La Liga (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019)
Trophy distribution
Career milestones
- 2001 Established himself at Red Star Belgrade
- 2005 Reached his defining peak
- 2009 Delivered a landmark season
- 2016 Retired from professional football
- 2005 Professional debut for Basel
- 2015 Won UEFA Champions League with Barcelona
- 2015 Won La Liga with Barcelona
- 2015 Reached the peak of his powers at Barcelona
- 2023 Retired after a final spell at Hajduk Split
- Finished his career with 90 goals in 700 appearances and 6 major honours. Finished his career with 90 goals in 700 appearances and 6 major honours.
The verdict
On balance Ivan Rakitić edges the comparison. The margin is a narrow margin, decided mostly by a sharper goalscoring record.
Ivan Rakitić edges it (a narrow margin)
