In the second half, Albania destroyed the Great Wall, and Croatia replaced the new team to overtake the score, but in the end they were still eliminated - Modric was somewhat energetic in the process, but it did not affect my judgment of him below - if he was still powerful, Croatia would be difficult to be distracted by Albania in the final stage.
The "speed of life and death" at the last moment of the two sides is probably the most exciting bloody battle of this competition. However, as an ordinary person with huge expectations for Croatia, this result finally brought a sense of relief after the suffering. To say a thousand ways and ten thousand, the lower limit of this team is there, but it is not enough to break through from the group of death.
The following was written in the first half -
Modric really can't do it, he doesn't have to wash.
In my countless previous articles, I have not hesitated to claim that Modric is one of my favourites among the current players. Not to mention anything else, when the side conceded the ball and the Albanian crossed from the right, Modric was no longer able to "get the ball to the person and take the lead in the charge" to fill the holes in the defensive line.
He could only stand and point fingers at the juniors in all directions, like the middle-aged people in the workplace we are familiar with. In the 11th minute, when the most dangerous moment came when Lacchi rushed to the top of the goal, Modric didn't even have the will and the tendency to run.
And in the 32nd minute, when Albania's deadly diagonal pass was almost one-handed (the ball was lost by Modric), Modric did get in place this time - but in the final moment he stretched his leg too late, and it was Livakovic who finally cleared the ball.
Anyone who has experienced the transition from youth to old knows that the change in the body is not actually a smooth downward curve, but a sudden precipitous decline after a certain moment. I think if you look closely at Modric tonight, you can clearly understand this -
Your mind hasn't slowed down, your eyes haven't slowed down, but your body just can't keep up, starting from your waist, to your knees, to your legs and feet, you can't move if you want to—you can only watch the young man pass in front of you like the wind.
If this had been the battlefield of the Teutonic Knights' crusade, the story would probably end in a bloody end. And tonight's narrative is the story of the Croatian generation of players (this generation, in fact, Modric), who have been repeatedly ravaged by the equally ferocious Albanians, although there is no real killing and bloodshed, but its tragedy and despair may be excessive.
So the reason for Croatia's defeat can be summed up in one sentence: Modric is no longer the three-headed, six-armed magic flute who can play one against three, on the contrary, he is a "limited player" who also needs his teammates to run fully to protect and fill in his positions in all directions.
Add one more sentence and you will understand Croatia's current situation even better: when the old wolf king stands among them, the soul is still there, and the body is no longer deterrent, no matter how good the "sapper wolf" is, it will become a lost sheep - if you do more, you will be criticized for being "too independent" like Kovacic. But the main thing is not how much, but this hesitation due to confusion and slowness caused by hesitation.
This kind of slowness, you can see it from Kramaric, Majer, Perisic - the Croats in the camera are actually passing on the kung fu and exquisite tacit understanding, but it is extremely slow.
So Croatia's slowness is essentially that "that" Modric is no longer there.
I said that Albania is "fierce", but in fact it is not true. People might be a bunch of intrepid dreamers who will slap the table in the dressing room and shout "win the world third place, we will be the world runners-up today" - what's wrong with that?
Before tonight, it can be said that I have a trace of nostalgia and anticipation for Modric's true form and combat ability. I could come up with countless reasons why he can still lead this team to a great fight, but now I've changed my mind.
I don't think that anymore and I won't say anything like that again. Life is like this, returning to the future, retreating to the mountains and forests, the Tao is just natural - for the Magic Flute himself, this is not even "sadness" at all. The real tragedy is that the Croatian national team - of course, without Modric, they would not be "old", but they are far from playing with soul and commitment.
Finally, I also want to say that when we tout that middle-aged people in the workplace are "rectified" by the post-00s, you most likely don't know what the person in front of you has experienced in his past life and what he has done.
You can let him go, or you don't want to see him again. But you'd better respect him.