“He went with his animals and always came back at the same time, but he didn’t show up that day. The animals returned by themselves. So they went looking for it, but I knew they wouldn’t find it.

It took Luka Modric almost 30 years to talk about his grandfather. That day when the goats returned alone, They found him riddled with bullets 500 meters from the house. Luke was 6 years old. And since then, an indelible mark.

It’s about the passage of time. And how to overcome it. There is Modric, the footballer who has been given an expiration date several times, once again marking his presence in today’s most important tournament.

In the last European Championship, with his great goal against Scotland, he became the greatest Croatian to score in that tournament (35 years and 286 days). He already had the reverse record: at 22 years and 273 days old he was the youngest to score in the 2008 edition, against Austria. The teacher asked the students to write a story about an event that marked their life. And Luka’s text has survived. Now he extends his magical career, as a leader, as a crack, leading his Croatia to the semifinals in Qatar. But more: eliminate Brazil.

“Even though I’m small,” he wrote at the age of 10, “I’ve been through a lot of fear in my life. The fear of war and bombing is something I am gradually overcoming. The event and feeling of terror that I will never forget happened four years ago when Chetniks (Serb guerrillas) killed my grandfather. I loved it so much. Everyone was crying and I could not understand that my dear grandfather would not come back. I wondered if those who did this, and those who drove us from our homes, could even be called people.

After his grandfather’s murder and with the growing war conflict in the region, Luka’s family traveled 60 kilometers through forests and mountains to take refuge in Zadar.

His new home was the Hotel Kolovare, used as accommodation for survivors of the war that ended up dividing Yugoslav territory. “The four of us lived in 20 square meters. I can’t say my childhood wasn’t happy, it was hard, but I remember the joy. There were so many children and we were playing football in front of the hotel and we couldn’t think about what was happening around us.”

When the alarm sounded they ran towards the bunker. “You’re a little scared because you’re always waiting for your father to come home.”

Modric comes from 1,100 minutes played in his last season at Real Madrid, the one in which he initially seemed relegated and handing over the baton to new talents. It would not have taken place between Valverde, Lucas Vázquez, Isco, Hazard, Kroos, Casemiro… He finished with the second record of appearances in his nine years with the Merengue shirt. The best score was seven years ago and with Carlo Ancelotti on the bench, who he will find when he returns to the club.

At the beginning of its 10th season He has already won four Champions Leagues, four Club World Cups, three European Super Cups. In addition to two championships, a King’s Cup and three Super Cups.

“No one is sure how Luka manages to maintain such a high level”Croatian coach Zlatko Dalic said after the game that lifted him to eighth. They needed to win to qualify after a 1-0 defeat by England early on and a 1-1 defeat by the Czech Republic. Modric, in addition to a fundamental goal and an assist, gave away 74 passes in 83 attempts.

Social networks immediately recalled the times in which Rafa Benítez tried to get rid of Luka’s mania for always wanting to hit the ball with the outside face of his right boot, as he did from the goal in the fine shot against Scotland.

As in Real Madrid, there was also talk of renewal in Croatia. There are no longer some pieces that were fundamental, such as Ivan Rakitic, Mario Mandzukic or Danijel Subasic. Another example is that of Vedran Corluka, who made his international debut in 2006, the same year as Modric, and is now technical assistant of the national team in which Luka continues to shine.

On Monday (at 13:00 in Argentina, in Copenhagen) they will meet Spain in the round of 16. The same rival they faced two months after coming out second in the world in 2018 and to whom they lost 6-0 in Elche.

After that match, 10 had a meeting with his teammates and made it clear to them that if he continued in the national team, it would not be to live in the past.

In his autobiography (“La mia festa”, 2020) he recounted having brought his children Ivano (10), Ema (7) and Sofia (2) to the country where he grew up, even if he preferred to omit some details of those days . “They wanted to see it, they were in the village. But I didn’t tell them what happened. In the future, there will be things I can tell you, but not yet.”

Dazzled and won six titles at Dinamo Zagrebthe same club where he was an idol David Suker. He was the most expensive signing in Tottenham’s history when he arrived for €27 million in 2008. His performance at Euro 2012 ended up convincing Real Madrid to pay €30 million for him to switch.

“I can only say that I never doubted myself”, he said during the World Cup in Russia when asked about his physical build, which often raised doubts in coaches. “I always believed I could get there. It wasn’t an obstacle, but rather an extra motivation for me. You don’t need to be strong to play football.”