00:01Luka!
00:03Luka!
00:05Luka!
00:07Luka!
00:07Luka!
00:07Luka!
00:08Luka!
00:08Luka showed us that it's easy to play.
00:12Believe me, it's really, really hard to play football.
00:16To play World Cup, it's even harder.
00:19And he plays like it's normal.
00:24It's like a dance for him.
00:27The individual star of Russia 2018 did not finish with a winner's medal.
00:32But Luka Modric demonstrated the range of passing and control of tempo
00:37that earned him the nickname The Puppet Master.
00:41Luka Modric carried Croatia almost single-handedly to the World Cup.
00:45The Croatian captain was a deserved winner of the competition's golden ball
00:49for his pivotal role, guiding his side all the way to the World Cup final.
00:56It came as no surprise when, soon afterwards,
00:59he ended Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's ten-year Ballon d'Or duopoly.
01:08It's a great honour, and I am very happy after receiving this great award.
01:14I've worked hard to be where I am today.
01:19This year has been fantastic.
01:23It wasn't just one of the best.
01:25It was the best of my life and my career.
01:30I have won a lot with Real Madrid.
01:32And with Croatia, I reached the World Cup final.
01:35And also, I won a lot of individual awards, like this one.
01:39So this year is just unforgettable.
01:41I will remember it forever.
01:48This was peak Messi and Ronaldo, which just goes to show how incredible Modric was at the World Cup and
01:54for Real Madrid.
01:56Four years later, Modric was at it again, winning the bronze ball for the tournament's third best player,
02:02after leading Croatia to third place.
02:05For me, it's always most important, the team.
02:10And I would change, of course, all my individual trophies for that trophy and World Cup champion.
02:17He is an unlikely superstar.
02:20Although a standout in Bosnia, then Croatia, he was an understated footballer, not the eye-catching creative force he would
02:28become.
02:29Modric was a star at Spurs.
02:31They didn't really know how to get the best out of him at first, often playing him off the left
02:35side.
02:36But they eventually moved him inside and started to see his true potential.
02:40But really, for the Premier League, he was too much of a craftsman and too subtle for English football in
02:45general.
02:47His profile grew at Tottenham Hotspur, then transformed following a 2012 move to Real Madrid.
02:54But not immediately for the better.
02:57During his first season in the Spanish capital, a marker newspaper poll saw fans single out Modric as La Liga's
03:04worst signing.
03:07Things quickly changed.
03:09I think he's been performing for the last ten years at his best level.
03:16And for him to take his team to the World Cup final is quite a big achievement.
03:22I like this kind of story.
03:23And if he wins the Ballon d'Or, I think it will be everything but deserved.
03:30At Real, Ronaldo's goal-scoring feats hogged the headlines and Madridistas adored the leadership of Sergio Ramos.
03:38But it was Modric who knitted everything together and made the team tick as his side hoovered up multiple UEFA
03:44Champions League titles.
03:49I'm happier than ever. I've always enjoyed playing football. I love football. I love what I do. And especially now,
03:58because you never know for how much longer you can last at this high level.
04:02I'm doing everything in my power to keep myself here for a few more years. I make an effort because
04:09there's nothing better for me than being a Real Madrid player.
04:17Boasting the technique, tempo and temperament of the quintessential modern midfielder, Luka Modric has earned his place as one of
04:25the very best on football's greatest stage.
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