3-1, with a victory in the final round of the group stage, Croatia grabbed a ticket to the round of 16 in the last minute. Modric, who blasted out the earth-shattering waves with the instep of his outer foot, is still the most indispensable team soul of this plaid legion.
Modric, who is about to turn 36 in September this year, has celebrated his seventh World Series (3 World Cups, 4 European Championships) at the European Championships, and he has surpassed two meritorious captains Srna (6 times) and Simic (6 times) to become the player with the most international competitions in the team's history.
Three years ago in the World Cup in Russia, Modric led Croatia to the runner-up to surprise the world, he not only won the best player of the tournament, but also won the 2018 Golden Ball Award. In the following 3 years, Modric was constantly questioned by the outside world, but he could always show a brilliant performance to prove that his sword was not old.
This European Championship, Modric led the team to attack the dream again. However, in the first two matches of the group stage, Croatia's performance was disappointing. In the first game against England, after 14 years, the Tartan Army, which visited Wembley again, lost 0-1, although the score difference was not large, but if it were not for Sterling's several happy football scenes, Croatia would have been difficult to avoid a fiasco. After veterans such as Subrac, Mandzukic and Rakitic withdrew from the national team, coach Dalic has been constantly adjusting the team's starting lineup, but has never been able to fill the vacancy. Modric became one of the few in the golden generation who could still make a place in the starting lineup.
In the second match against the Czech Republic, Croatia drew 1-1 with their opponents. Modric, who lacked the support of his teammates, covered both ends of the attack and defense with an almost frantic run, and his figure could be seen in almost any corner of the court. After 90 minutes, the Magic Flute completed 74 touches, 50 passes, 1 pass, 5 successful confrontations and 2 shovels, and he was also named the best player of the game. However, a draw could not change the predicament, and the Lattice Army, which only scored 1 point in the two games of the group stage, was forced to the edge of the cliff.
The group stage clashed against Scotland, and after ending the first half with a 1-1 score, Modric finally broke out. In the 61st minute, Modric's outside foot pass on the right side instigated the attack, and after receiving Kovacic's score, the magic flute bounced out of the outside foot to help the team rewrite the score to 2-1.
With this goal, Modric unlocked a number of achievements, becoming the first player in the history of the team to score in three consecutive European Championships (Euro 2008, Euro 2016 and Euro 2020), and the second player to score after Cristiano Ronaldo in both Euro 2008 and this European Championship. In addition, Croatia's goalscoring records for the youngest (22 years and 273 days) and the oldest (35 years and 286 days) in the European Championship belong to him.
In the 76th minute, Modric assisted Perisic's header through a corner kick to seal the win. Throughout the game, Modric touched the ball 115 times, with a pass success rate of 88%, 7 successful long passes, 5 times to regain the ball, 1 chance to create and complete 1 steal and 1 clearance.
Although UEFA awarded the best of the game to Vlasic, who scored the first goal, in the eyes of more fans, Modric was the biggest contributor to Croatia's qualification. The veteran continued the croatian dream with a heroic play.