LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Luka Modric pulled his shirt up over his face as he walked to the bench.
Croatia’s red-and-white-clad fans recognized the painful significance of the moment and rose to applaud the diminutive midfielder who is arguably the greatest player in their country’s history.
Boisterous Argentina supporters soon followed suit at the Lusail Stadium, honoring an opponent likely to appear at their last World Cup.
Substituting in the 81st minute on Tuesday, with his team trailing by three goals, effectively marked the end of Modric’s World Cup era. Croatia ended up losing to Argentina 3-0 in the semifinals, four years after the team lost to France in the final.
Modric was somber when he was replaced by Lovro Majer before calmly taking a seat on the bench. There was no grand gesture to the crowd or outpouring of emotions for a man whose understated brilliance can still be overlooked despite all he’s accomplished.
“We just wanted to be back in the final,” Modric said, “but unfortunately we’re not.”
The second most famous 37-year-old player in the World Cup goes home, a few days after the other.
Modric is the same age as his former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, but as the two approach the twilight of their trophy-filled careers, the contrast is stark. That was particularly evident before and during the World Cup.
While Ronaldo stole the limelight with his explosive interview with Piers Morgan on the eve of the tournament, Modric expressed himself on the pitch.
After leading Croatia to the final in Russia, he was the inspiration again as a nation with a population of roughly 4 million reached the semifinals for the second consecutive World Cup.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo, amid the distraction of his departure from Manchester United and possible transfer to a club in Saudi Arabia, ended up on the bench and in tears when Portugal’s hopes were dashed by Morocco in the quarter-finals.
In Croatia’s quarterfinal match, Modric played his part in eliminating Brazil and Neymar. But there was nothing he could do to stop Lionel Messi on his personal mission to finally win soccer’s biggest trophy. Messi scored the opener from the penalty spot on Tuesday and then produced a piece of magic to set up the second of Julián Álvarez’s two goals.
But Messi was not the only iconic figure on display at the Lusail Stadium.
Surely considered by many to be the best in Croatia, Modric is also among the best midfielders to ever play the sport. A five-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid, he also won soccer’s top individual award, the Ballon d’Or, in 2018.
And his performances in Qatar show that he still has more to give. It is possible that he will play for his national team again in the 2024 European Championship with a final bow for his country. And who would rule out more trophies with Real Madrid?
“Well, maybe this is the end of the generation at the World Cup. A couple of them are at an age where it will be difficult to play in the World Cup in 2026. We will wait and see,” Croatia coach Zlatko Dalić said. “I think a lot of players will end up at Euro 2024.”
Wherever Modric’s story goes from here, his status as a World Cup great is assured.
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James Robson is in https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup Y https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
