Even if this is the end for Croatia midfielder Luka Modric. the past three weeks have improved his legacy. which began with a Lionel Messi goal in Basel a long time ago. Modric is still very good and the World Cup has made him more famous. Only Luka Modric will be able to determine whether it concluded exactly the same way in this monstrous and dystopian supplement to Doha.
Unlike Messi. Modric did not feel as much pressure to win this tournament.
Croatia are not Argentina. as was eventually emphasized here. nor is he required to answer questions about his all-time greatness. While failing will hurt. the past three weeks have only served to strengthen a legacy that is already unquestionable. There haven’t been many midfielders like Modric at the World Cup; Few small nations have performed as well as Croatia; It has never seen a player harness the nation’s collective spirit and footballing expertise to twice rise to the top.
Last but not least
Fourth place in 2018: finishes that Modric achieved during the winter of his career with two sides that are distinct but identical. His glances. sidesteps. and half-movements have given him room to call the tune. and both have followed his rhythm. Even though this semi-final turned into a non-contest. it was still awe-inspiring to watch them stitch a game’s fabric together one last time. He and Messi are no longer so different these days. at least in how they manipulate space.
They both had reason to remember the first. in March 2006. when Messi. then 18. scored for Argentina and Modric. then 20. made his Croatia debut. Messi had just finished his breakthrough season with Barcelona at the time. Although Modric prevailed. he was unable to do so in Messi’s cathedral 16 and a half years later. Regardless of whether this was not exactly the whirling. energetic cauldron of Argentina’s past visits to Lusail. the convergence of additional easygoing punters had. as a rule. hung themselves in light blue. The fact that Modric’s renowned midfield team held Argentina down for just over 30 minutes will frustrate him. They were the better of different sides high on structure however lacking in going after flash. Croatia’s limits clarified when Kovacic broke the lines multiple times just for no one to go with him.
Modric had started playing the songs
three angled. whip-smart passes in the first ten minutes; an easy. caressed pass around the corner to Kovacic. and Argentina’s midfield diamond lost any surprise; a burst past Alexis Mac Allister that earned a corner. fitting for a player in his best years.
.
However. sport is cruel. It should never be anything else at this point in the most gripping competition it has ever faced. That play came to an end with a chip from Ivan Perisic that Croatia thought had been deflected for a corner. However. Argentina were given the ball back. and a loose Modric touch allowed Enzo Fernández to let Julián lvarez go. a sanction; Messi; confirmation of the narrative of the night; a path that began as treacherous and soon became even more so.
A minor error had significant indirect effects. but the bigger factor was that Argentina had a player who could run in behind opponents. which Croatia lacked.
Modric was supposed to perform no more miracles.
Modric gave each of Croatia’s players and support staff a Rolex watch when they returned from Moscow four and a half years earlier. There were approximately fifty people there. and there was no attempt to show off: He was just expressing his gratitude to the establishment that had written a place in history and many of its employees had guided him through the previous decade and more. This winter. a glance at those watches might have revealed a story.