Sometimes, the gods of sport do not reward a player according to his excellent career. That is the case of the genius Luka Modric, who saw, from the substitutes’ bench, how his Croatia was left out of Euro-2024, becoming his last game with the national team.
The 1-1 draw against Italy was of no use to the Croatians, who reached the round of 16 as one of the four best third places.
The two teams had more at stake than three points and advancement to the round of 16. Honor and history were in dispute.
The Balkans opened the scoring with Modric’s goal (55′), just a minute after having wasted a penalty kick. Everything suggested that the Croats and their captain would still be alive.
But the current king of Europe appealed to the grit, with a more vertical football, while his rivals were running out of ideas, particularly after the departure of Modric in the 80th minute. In the last play of additional time, Mattia Zaccagni (90+ 8′) he unleashed a beautiful shot, and there was no time for more.
SPAIN IN FULL SAIL
With the security of knowing that they had qualified for the round of 16 and as first in group B, Spain completely revamped their starting eleven, and gave the substitutes ownership. With the B team, the three points came, thanks to Ferrán Torres’ goal (13′).
In the Copa América, based in the United States, James Rodríguez, at 32 years old, served the two balls that scored his team’s goals in the victory against Paraguay. Brazil and Costa Rica tied without goals.
#Cuba
