00:01Luka!
00:03Luka!
00:04Luka!
00:05Luka!
00:05Luka showed us that it's easy to play.
00:10Believe me, it's really, really hard to play football.
00:14To play World Cup, it's even harder.
00:17And he plays like it's normal.
00:22It's like a dance for him.
00:25The individual star of Russia 2018 did not finish with a winner's medal.
00:30But Luka Modric demonstrated the range of passing and control of tempo
00:35that earned him the nickname The Puppet Master.
00:38Luka Modric carried Croatia almost single-handedly to the World Cup.
00:43The Croatian captain was a deserved winner of the competition's golden ball
00:47for his pivotal role, guiding his side all the way to the World Cup final.
00:54It came as no surprise when, soon afterwards,
00:57he ended Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's ten-year Ballon d'Or duopoly.
01:05It's a great honour, and I'm very happy after receiving this great award.
01:11I've worked hard to be where I am today.
01:17This year has been fantastic.
01:21It wasn't just one of the best.
01:23It was the best of my life and my career.
01:28I have won a lot with Real Madrid.
01:30And with Croatia, I reached the World Cup final.
01:33And also, I won a lot of individual awards, like this one.
01:36So this year is just unforgettable.
01:39I will remember it forever.
01:46This was peak Messi and Ronaldo, which just goes to show how incredible Modric was
01:51at the World Cup and for Real Madrid.
01:53Four years later, Modric was at it again, winning the bronze ball for the tournament's third best player,
02:00after leading Croatia to third place.
02:03For me, it's always the most important team.
02:08And I would change, of course, all my individual trophies for that trophy and World Cup champion.
02:15He is an unlikely superstar.
02:18Although a standout in Bosnia, then Croatia, he was an understated footballer,
02:23not the eye-catching creative force he would become.
02:27Modric was a star at Spurs.
02:29They didn't really know how to get the best out of him at first,
02:32often playing him off the left side.
02:34But they eventually moved him inside and started to see his true potential.
02:38But really, for the Premier League, he was too much of a craftsman
02:41and too subtle for English football in general.
02:45His profile grew at Tottenham Hotspur, then transformed following a 2012 move to Real Madrid.
02:52But not immediately for the better.
02:55During his first season in the Spanish capital,
02:58a marker newspaper poll saw fans single out Modric as La Liga's worst signing.
03:05Things quickly changed.
03:07I think he's been performing for the last ten years at his best level.
03:14And for him to take his team to the World Cup final is quite a big achievement.
03:19I like these kind of stories and if he wins the Ballon d'Or, I think it will be everything
03:26but deserved.
03:28At Real, Ronaldo's goal-scoring feats hogged the headlines and Madridistas adored the leadership of Sergio Ramos.
03:35But it was Modric who knitted everything together and made the team tick as his side hoovered up multiple UEFA
03:42Champions League titles.
03:47I'm happier than ever. I've always enjoyed playing football.
03:51I love football. I love what I do.
03:54And especially now, because you never know for how much longer you can last at this high level.
04:00I'm doing everything in my power to keep myself here for a few more years.
04:06I make an effort because there's nothing better for me than being a Real Madrid player.
04:15Boasting the technique, tempo and temperament of the quintessential modern midfielder,
04:21Luka Modric has earned his place as one of the very best on football's greatest stage.
04:25Boasting the Index
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