The sword never grows old! 40-year-old Modric leads the team to the World Cup, ushering in the fifth World Cup trip

6686 Sports News on November 15th. In the European qualifying match of the World Cup this morning, the Croatian home team defeated the Faroe Islands 3-1, securing first place in the group one round ahead of schedule, thus entering the World Cup main draw for the seventh time in team history. The 40-year-old Modric will usher in his fifth World Cup trip.

In the previous 4 World Cup tours, Modric played a total of 19 games, contributing 2 goals and 1 assist, helping Croatia win the runner-up in the 2018 World Cup and the third place in the 2022 World Cup. He won the World Cup Golden Ball with his strong performance in the 2018 World Cup.

Review of Modric’s first four World Cup tours

In the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Modric, who was under 21 years old at the time, ushered in his first World Cup tour. He came on as a reserve player in both group matches against Japan and Australia. Croatia ended the group match with a record of 2 draws and 1 loss.

In the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Modric started and played in all three group matches, but Croatia had 1 win and 2 losses in 3 games, and once again missed the group qualifying.

In the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Modric led Croatia to defeat Argentina, Denmark, Russia, and England, advancing to the World Cup finals for the first time in team history. Although they eventually lost to France and finished second, Modric successfully won the World Cup Golden Ball with his midfield master-level performance of 2 goals and 1 assist in 7 games, and 17 key passes. Also that year, Modric also won the World Footballer and Ballon d'Or.

In the 2022 World Cup, the 37-year-old Modric once again led Croatia to the semi-finals. Although they lost to Argentina 0-3 in the semi-finals, they defeated dark horse Morocco 2-1 in the finals and won third place.