October 1, 2019 - Croatia captain and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric announced on Monday that he would be releasing a book, and namely an autobiography titled My Game.

“It is my great pleasure to announce the upcoming publication of my book. I’m happy to share my life story with all of you and I hope you’ll like My Game,” the 34-year-old footballer announced via Twitter and Instagram. 

It is my great pleasure to announce the upcoming publication of my book. I’m happy to share my life story with all of you and I hope you’ll like My Game. pic.twitter.com/8U5arJbcjj

— Luka Modrić (@lukamodric10) September 30, 2019

Recall, Luka Modric won the Golden Ball at the 2018 World Cup, where he also became a finalist with Croatia. Luka went on to win the Ballon d’Or and was named the men’s best player by FIFA and UEFA for the 2017/18 season. He also won the Golden Ball at the FIFA World Club Cup with Real Madrid, and helped the club win their third consecutive Champions League title - and that’s just part of it. 

Modric trained with his teammates in Madrid on Monday and is included in the 19-player lineup for the Champions League match between Real Madrid and Club Brugge, which will be played on Tuesday at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.

On Saturday, Modric played the last 25 minutes against Atlético Madrid, which was his first appearance after 19 days and a muscle injury. 

After the match, HRT reported that Modric told the Spanish radio station Onda Cero that he had recovered from his injury and that he would join the Croatia national team for the upcoming Euro 2020 qualifiers against Hungary on October 10 and against Wales three days later in Cardiff. 

Modric could also have a place in the starting line-up against Club Brugge on Tuesday. 

Last week, for the fifth consecutive year, the Croatian representative was ranked among the top 11 football players in the world by the FIFA FIFPro. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

September 29, 2019 - Luka Modric returned to the pitch on Saturday after a muscle injury and helped Real Madrid earn a valuable point against city rival Atletico Madrid. But the result is not the only thing the media wrote about.

Index.hr and Gol.hr report that Luka Modric has been absent from the pitch for the last few weeks after a muscle injury surfaced once the international break with Croatia ended earlier this month. Recall, Croatia met Slovakia and Azerbaijan in the Euro 2020 qualifiers from September 6 to 9.

Fortunately, Luka’s injury was anything but major, and the Croatia captain recovered in time for the Madrid derby. Namely, coach Zinedine Zidane sent Modric onto the pitch for the last 25 minutes in the big derby against Atletico Madrid, which was held as part of the 7th round of La Liga. Modric missed the previous four games due to his muscle injury.

The match ended 0:0, with the slight dominance of Atletico, but also the significant inaccuracy of its players, who failed to get any dangerous shots into the goal. On the other hand, Real was very close to scoring on two occasions, but Jan Oblak reacted both times miraculously. The Croatia captain significantly improved Real’s game and showed just how crucial he is to Zinedine Zidane's line-up.

But outside of the game itself, one small detail caught the eyes of Luka Modric, Real Madrid, and football fans around the world on Saturday - Luka’s little-known pregame ritual. 

Namely, before Luka entered the match as a substitute, the camera caught Zidane's assistant and Luka sitting on the bench to go over tactics. Before Luka put on his shin pads, which adorn photographs of his wife, three children, and Jesus Christ, he kissed each photo (which you could see in the photo above). Afterward, Luka strapped the pad on his leg and covered it with his sock.

Screenshot

Madrid portal AS dedicated a short text and video to the moment entitled: "Unknown detail of Luka Modric's ritual in preparation for the match.”

The author of the text wrote that because we rarely see Modric enter the match from the bench, we are unaware of his pregame rituals, which he most likely performs in the dressing room where the cameras are not allowed. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Inter Milan's dreams of bringing the captain of the Croatia national team over to Italy this summer might be fizzling, and fast. Luka Modrić could very well play his 8th season for Real Madrid.

Although his departure from Real Madrid has been speculated often as of late, forcing some of his fans to turn their backs on the 2018 best footballer in the world, Luka Modrić might just be staying at the Spanish giant thanks to a renewed contract. Specifically, Modrić should extend his current contract for a year, so that it will be valid until the summer of 2021, reports Gol.hr onMay 23, 2019. 

In the following days, Modrić should officially sign a new contract, which is the result of a sneaky clause in his old contract, stating that the club would extend their cooperation with the Croatian footballer if he won the Golden Ball. Modrić must have had an inkling he would win the honor to bravely slide the clause into his contract, guaranteeing the Croatian captain an additional year at the royal club. 

According to Spanish sports daily Marca, the Croatian representative has the maximum confidence in Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane and will do everything in his power to return to the level he had last season and at the World Cup in Russia in 2018.

Modrić will join Tony Kroos who also extended his contract this week with Real Madrid, although he was expected to be one of the players leaving the club. Kroos’s new contract is valid until 2023. 

Modrić played his seventh season in Madrid after repeatedly announcing that he returned mentally and physically exhausted from the World Cup, where he played in the final for Croatia.

Thanks to penalties against Denmark in the round of 16, followed by Russia in the quarters, England in the semis, and finally losing to France in the final, as well as receiving every award possible in 2018 for the best footballer in the world, Modrić ran on empty for Real Madrid this season. 

Recall, Real Madrid lost to in the semi-finals of the Cup to Barcelona and the round of 16 to Ajax in the Champions League. Last summer, Real Madrid was defeated by city rival Atlético Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

Luka Modrić has won four Champion League titles, four Club World Cups, three European Super Cups, one Spanish championship, one Cup and two Spanish Super Cups with Real Madrid.

March 3, 2019 - Luka Modrić and Ivan Rakitić met on Saturday evening in the always anticipated El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona. 

This was the second time the two Spanish clubs met this week, as they played the second-leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final on Wednesday. 

Just as Barcelona was better on Wednesday, winning by three goals, they were better again on Saturday with another win in Madrid - and this time, thanks to Croatia’s Ivan Rakitić. 

In the 26th minute, the Croatian player, who was also one of the best players in the game, received a brilliant ball in the penalty area from Sergio Roberto, chipped the ball passed Madrid keeper Thibault Courtois and gave Barcelona the lead - and ultimately the win. This is Rakitić’s third goal this season in the Spanish championship.

Not even Ballon d’Or winner and Rakitić’s fellow countryman Luka Modrić could help Madrid, who played their sixth consecutive El Clasico without a win. Recall, Barcelona has won four and two games ended in a draw. The victory also has an important historical factor, as Barcelona, for the first time since 87 years, has taken over Real Madrid in the competition - Barcelona now has 96 wins, and Real 95.

“With all due respect to Real Madrid, we have made an important step towards winning the championship. Now we have to enjoy it together, let all the fans and admirers of Barcelona enjoy, and then we will turn to what is ahead of us,” said the 30-year-old Rakitić at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid.

First-placed Barcelona is now 12 points ahead of the third-placed Madrid on the table. 

“When you win you have to be very happy. I'm proud of what we did. There are not many teams in the world that can say they won twice in three days,” the Croatian midfielder said on HRT. 

Rakitić scored 26 minutes in for the lead, his fifth goal in 39 appearances this season.

"We talked about what happened on Wednesday, and then we started the game well. We created opportunities and felt comfortable. They pressed in the second half, which was normal because they were looking to equalize, but we managed to end the game with some counter attacks. It's a perfect thing that we've won this game here,” Rakitić said.

Even Jose Mourinho, who played the part of a television commentator on Saturday, focused a lot of his attention on El Clasico. He especially hailed Ivan Rakitić.

"I have been saying this for a long time: for me, Rakitić is one of the most underappreciated players in the world. He’s fantastic in every aspect, works a lot in the defense and compensates for Messi's defensive performance. He is fantastic with the ball, chooses simple and efficient solutions,” he said, and finished sarcastically, reports Gol.hr.

“I wanted to say this because we are mostly talking about big names. Rakitić needs to improve his Instagram and social networks, which is very important today. He’s not so good at it, but he's good on the field,” he said.

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Ovaj videoo je tako sladakk?? @ivanrakitic @lukamodric10

A post shared by fan page mauri/rakitic?❤️ (@familia_rakitic) on Mar 2, 2019 at 10:45pm PST

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

The Croatian footballer will not go to prison, however, and has accepted an eight-month suspended prison sentence as part of the agreement with Spanish prosecutors.

If FIFA finds out that the lawsuit was sound, Inter could be paying a pretty penny. 

It seems that some important clues have been dropped about where Croatia’s best footballer will continue his club career.

Mateo Kovačić will play for Chelsea on a season-long loan from Real Madrid.

There has been quite a bit of speculation surrounding Luka Modrić’s possible transfer to Inter Milan. But will the best player of the World Cup leave Real Madrid, the club that has given him four Champions League titles?