MOSCOW: As a journalist asks him yet another long-winded question during Croatia’s pre-match press briefing, Luka Modric stares at him with a hint of suspicion on his face, as if he expects a tackle from behind at the end of it. He brushes back his hair, neatly parted down the middle and strokes his chin. But then, at some point in the question, he is described as the best player in the world. Modric breaks into a smile. It is almost like he is embarrassed by that claim.
Players of Modric’s ilk are hardly ever given the credit they deserve, Andres Iniesta is a case in point. But while this World Cup may have started off to talk of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Mohamed Salah and Neymar, its end so far has been a celebration of the little Croat magician.
And for good reason too, for no one has had a World Cup quite like him. You can quantify his tournament with numbers — he is joint-top when it comes to the man of the match awards alongside Harry Kane, in the top three when it comes to most crosses and passes and fourth in the table that deals with the most chances created — but attempting that almost feels like a sin.
Perhaps the best way to do that is to let the highlight reel play. There was that through ball in extra time against Denmark — Modric could not have drawn with a ruler, a line straighter than the path the ball took as it bypassed three defenders and found Ante Rebic clear on goal. There was that casual outside-of-theboot lob to Ivan Perisic that sparked off yet another late attack against England.
And there was that goal which broke a million Argentinean hearts — a dummy to the left, a turn to the right and a shot that Willy Caballero would not have gotten to, had he had a ten-second head start on the ball. Now, Modric is being talked of the man to break the 11-year hegemony of Messi and Ronaldo over the Ballon d’Or.
The boy, who was once told he was too small for football, now towers over every single person who told him that. The entire world is singing hymns to his glory, perhaps the most beautiful of them composed by Argentinean great Jorge Valdano who described him as a ‘miracle worker who reminds us space and time exists’. A lot of who he is now must come from where he has been.
Even his name is a reminder of his tragic origins. ‘Modric’ comes from the village of Modrici outside the Croatian city of Zadar, burnt down by Serbian rebels during the war that tore Yugoslavia apart. Luka was his grandfather who raised him while both his parents worked to feed him, gunned down while tending to cattle.
“I have seen a great deal of hardship in my life,” Modric said on Saturday ahead of the final. “What is more important is never to give up, never to give in to circumstances, to trust yourself and to soldier on. There will be obstacles and ups and downs in life, but you have to trust yourself. This is what led me to this point in my life.”
There is a story about him, from the days his family used to take refuge in a Zagreb hotel during the Yugoslav Wars. It is said that young Modric was so in love with football that he used to go to sleep with the ball tucked beneath his arm. It is no wonder then, football is now loving him back.
vishnu.prasad@newindianexpress.com