Luka Modrić

Luka Modrić [ˈluːka ˈmɔːdritɕ] (born 9 September 1985 in Zadar) is a Croatian footballer who has played for Real Madrid since 2012. He previously played for Dinamo Zagreb and Tottenham Hotspur. He also won the Croatian Championship three times (2006, 2007, 2008), the Croatian Football Cup twice (2007, 2008) and the Croatian Supercup once (2006) with Dinamo Zagreb. Internationally, he won the Champions League (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018) and the FIFA Club World Cup (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018) four times each with Real Madrid, and the UEFA Super Cup three times (2014, 2016, 2017). Similarly, nationally, he won the Spanish Super Cup twice with Madrid (2012, 2017), as well as the Spanish Championship twice (2017 and 2020) and the Spanish Cup once (2014).

Modrić is the captain of the Croatian national team. He was runner-up with the team in Russia 2018 and was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament. Since 27 March 2021, the midfielder is the sole record international player of his home country.

In 2018, he became the first Croatian to be named FIFA World Player of the Year. He also received the Ballon d'Or and the title of European Footballer of the Year.

Early years

Luka Modrić grew up near the village of Zaton Obrovački, near his native Zadar. After the outbreak of the Croatian war in 1991, he and his family were displaced by Serbian guerrillas. Modrić's grandfather and six other civilians were murdered in the village of Jasenice by Serbian guerrillas in December 1991.

Association

The midfielder played as a youth player for NK Zadar, a club in his hometown. From there, scouts from the Croatian capital club Dinamo Zagreb brought him into their youth department in 2001. He signed his first professional contract with Dinamo Zagreb as a youth player.

In 2003, he was loaned to HŠK Zrinjski Mostar in the Premijer Liga in Bosnia and Herzegovina to gain professional experience. There he was awarded as the best player of the Premijer Liga at the age of 18. In 2004, they loaned him on to Inter Zaprešić. From 2005 he played for Dinamo Zagreb again and was an integral part of the first team. In 2008, he moved to Tottenham Hotspur. There, after a short time, he established himself as a regular player and playmaker of the team. In the summer of 2012, Modrić went on strike for two days in training at Tottenham Hotspur to force a move to Real Madrid, as he felt the transfer fee demanded by his club was too high. Tottenham Hotspur fined Modrić £80,000. He ended his strike, but was no longer allowed to take part in team training; for two months he had to train alone.

On 27 August 2012, both clubs agreed on a transfer. Modrić signed a five-year contract with Real. The transfer fee was around €35 million. Modric played his first competitive match in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup against FC Barcelona. He made his league debut against Granada FC on matchday 3 of the Primera División. He scored his first goal on matchday 10 in a 4-0 win over Real Zaragoza. His contract runs until 30 June 2021. At Real Madrid, Modrić shaped an era with players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale, Isco, Sergio Ramos, Raphaël Varane, Dani Carvajal, Marcelo, Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Keylor Navas. In addition to winning the championship in the 2016/17 season and the Copa del Rey in the 2013/14 season, he won the Champions League four times in 2014 and 2016, 2017 and 2018. They also won the UEFA Super Cup, the Club World Cup and the Spanish Super Cup.

Because of his stature and long hair, Modrić has been called el pony since he started playing in Madrid.