Tottenham hero Luka Modric breaks record as ‘exemplary’ professionalism shines
Real Madrid’s former Tottenham Hotspur man Luka Modric smashed a La Liga record on Saturday afternoon, as the football world mulls over his immense longevity.
Fabrizio Romano’s post on X brought attention to Modric’s achievement, becoming the oldest player to play a La Liga match with Real Madrid at 38 years and 238 days – five days older than Ferenc Puskas.
The Croatia captain’s four years in North London gave him the platform for his move to Real Madrid in 2012, since playing over 500 times for the club, lifting a whopping 25 trophies and counting.
Modric’s longevity has seen him turn out over 1,000 times in his professional career since 2003, ever since his debut with Dinamo Zagreb.
The man himself has attributed his ‘exemplary’ career to a simple hunger for football, which may not be matched by many other players of his age and decoration. He has denied any particularly outlandish dietary, sleeping or medicinal routines.
Capable of magical moments during his time at White Hart Lane, Spurs fans are left to wonder when a gem like Modric will come around again in N17.
What set Modric apart at Tottenham?
Luka Modric is one of those complete midfielders who straddled the brackets of world class players you wouldn’t have in your fantasy league team.
The Croatian genius scored 13 goals and made 15 assists in four seasons at Spurs, which aren’t necessarily going to be statistics which earn you a move which enables you to become a Real Madrid and world football icon.
But it was his ability to do the unnoticed, ‘dirty’ duties that would allow the luxury players to shine – most likely a significant reason for his continued Spanish success.
Under Harry Redknapp in 2010, Modric was part of the Spurs team which broke into the UEFA Champions League for the first time. That team played with fluidity and a cleverness which wasn’t seen again until the prime years of Harry Kane got underway around six or seven years later.
Not to mention, his relationship on the pitch with Gareth Bale, which would resume in Madrid.
Tottenham have the talent at their disposal at present, but not that fluidity. A fragmented set of talented players are becoming frustrated such as James Maddison, not to mention Ange Postecoglou – especially considering their start to the season when top four seemed a certainty.
Modric single-handedly brings that fluidity.
In other Tottenham news, Daniel Levy could be taking a step back in his club involvement.
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