Published By: Rohit Chatterjee

On This Day (Dec. 3): Breaking the 11-Year-Old Stranglehold – Luka Modric Denies the Ballon d’Or to Messi & Ronaldo

"My dream was to play for a big club, to win important trophies. I dreamed about it, but the Ballon d'Or was more than a childhood dream for me." – Luka Modric

December 3, i.e., is one of the most important dates in the world of football because once upon a time, it was believed that nobody could win the Ballon d'Or till Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were on the pitch. However, on this day, Croatia's captain did the impossible by getting his hands on the prestigious Ballon d'Or, thanks to his overall performance with Real Madrid and Croatia at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Breaking the 11-year-old stranglehold

The day was historic because 2007 was the last time when Kaká lifted the Ballon d'Or trophy. After 2007, the Ballon d'Or became the personal property of two legendary names, i.e., Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Between 2008 and 2018, both Messi and Ronaldo picked five d'Ors each, making it impossible for any other player to touch the coveted trophy.

Why Modric?

Everybody is probably aware of why Modric, but before we get into his heroics, let us get the criteria for winning the d'Or straight. There are three criteria, and they are:

  • The individual and collective trophies or prizes won by a player in a year.
  • The player's class, i.e., the talent of the player and his fair play, is also analysed.
  • The player's career as a whole.

15 years of play summarised in a year

In 2018, Modric may not have had the most number of goals and assists, but he was constantly the heart of both Real Madrid and Croatia. The leader in both the dressing rooms kept the tempo of almost every Real Madrid and Croatia World Cup match.

If his numbers from the World Cup are looked at, they stand at 484 pass attempts and 422 passes, the most in the World Cup, whereas 624 touches are the highest in the 2018 World Cup. Russian stadiums even saw him making 56 recoveries, another maximum in the tourney. In fact, the whole season, he played 56 games for Real Madrid and Croatia but was not sent off once.

Top-notch achievements   

The year saw him winning his fourth UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid while leading Croatia to their first-ever World Cup final. In terms of awards, he was awarded the UEFA's Midfielder of the Season, the World Cup Golden Ball, and The Best FIFA Men's Player awards. For somebody playing in the midfield, he simply outdid others even though many may continue to debate that he did not deserve the d'Or.

Career achievements in 2018

In 2018, when Modric was 33, some of his major career achievements looked like this:

  • Four league titles
  • Six domestic cups
  • Four Champions Leagues
  • Six global club titles
  • Four FIFA FIFPro World XI nominations
  • Four times included in the Champions League Team of the Season

And several other achievements that cannot be mentioned here, given the list is too lengthy. In fact, in our personal opinion, he is probably the most complete midfielder the world since Zidane with both offensive and defensive prowess.

At 39, Modric is still an integral part of Real Madrid and Croatia and has no intention to hang his studs.