Luka Modric

Luka Modrić (Croatian pronunciation: [lûːka mǒːdritɕ]; born 9 September 1985) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Serie A club AC Milan and captains the Croatia national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, and as the greatest Croatian player ever.

Modrić made his international debut for Croatia against Argentina in March 2006, and scored his first international goal in a friendly match against Italy. Modrić has anchored Croatia's "second Golden Generation", participating in every major tournament Croatia has qualified for, including every UEFA Euro from 2008 to 2024 as well as every FIFA World Cup from 2006 to 2022. At Euro 2008, he was named in the Team of the Tournament. Modrić led Croatia to the 2018 World Cup final, winning the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player. In March 2021, he became the country's most capped player. At the 2022 World Cup, he led the team to a third-place finish, winning the Bronze Ball as the tournament’s third best player. He has also been named Croatian Footballer of the Year a record fourteen times between 2007 and 2025. In addition to that, he was named the BTA Best Balkan Athlete of the Year for 2018.

After the appointment of manager Harry Redknapp, Modrić was given a more familiar role as a central or left-sided midfielder, allowing him to have more influence on the team and use his footballing talent more productively, for example in a 4–4 draw with arch-rivals Arsenal on 29 October. Redknapp recognised Modrić's value to his side and planned to shape his new team around the Croatian playmaker. He scored his first competitive goal at Tottenham in a 2–2 draw against Spartak Moscow during the UEFA Cup group stages on 18 December 2008. He scored his first Premier League goals against Newcastle United in an away defeat on 21 December, a home win in the third round of the FA Cup against Wigan Athletic on 2 January 2009, and in an away defeat against Manchester United on 25 April 2009. Using Modrić in his former position from his Dinamo days made him more effective with performances against Stoke City, Hull City, and most notably on 21 March when he scored the only goal in a win against Chelsea.

Modrić started in Real Madrid's home match against rivals Barcelona on 2 March 2013. From a corner kick, he assisted Sergio Ramos to score the winning goal in the 82nd minute, giving Real a victory in El Clásico. On 5 March, Modrić came on as a second-half substitute during the decisive Champions League knockout leg against ten-man Manchester United at Old Trafford. With Madrid behind by a goal, Modrić equalised with a long-range shot from 25 yd (23 m) out and played a key role in the rest of the match, which Real Madrid won 2–1, advancing them to the quarter-finals 3–2 on aggregate. This match is often seen as the turning point in Modrić's career in Real Madrid. On 16 March, he replicated this performance against Mallorca, giving Real Madrid the lead with a long-range volley from 30 yd (27 m); Real Madrid won the match 5–2. Modrić played as a starter in both Champions League semi-final matches against Borussia Dortmund. In the first leg on 24 April, he played in the attacking midfield position where he did not influence the match and the team lost 4–1. On 30 April, in the second leg 2–0 victory, Modrić played as the deep-lying playmaker, making passes to the attackers and creating several chances; he was among the best-rated players that night. From March 2013, Modrić's form and influence in the midfield continued to improve, distinguishing himself as a player with most passes completed in his team. On 8 May, he assisted from the corner for the first goal and scored the fourth goal in a 6–2 victory over Málaga.

Source: Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License