‘We need him’ – Croatia coach asks Modric to postpone retirement

Croatia’s Luka Modric walks previous the trophy after the Nations League remaining.
| Photo Credit: AP

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic on Monday appealed to star midfielder Luka Modric to remain amid rising hypothesis the captain will retire from worldwide soccer.

Dalic’s feedback got here a day after Croatia misplaced 5-4 on penalties to Spain within the Nations League remaining in Rotterdam.

“We need him, this is a generation that still did not complete the job,” Dalic instructed reporters after returning to Zagreb.

The Real Madrid participant famously led Croatia to a second-place end on the 2018 World Cup and third place finally 12 months’s event in Qatar.

Croatia had been chasing its first ever main trophy towards a Spain group Modric is aware of inside out.

On Monday, entrance pages throughout Croatia ran photos of the dejected midfielder following the nail-biting defeat.

“It was rather emotional for him yesterday,” mentioned Dalic.

“Let him rest and he will tell us what he thinks,” the coach added.

On Sunday, Modric mentioned he had already made a “clear decision” about his worldwide profession however didn’t elaborate, in accordance with stories in native media.

“I will not announce it today,” mentioned Modric, whereas leaving the stadium in Rotterdam.

Modric has performed in 166 matches for Croatia since his debut in 2006.