Real Madrid and Luka Modric have signed an agreement to continue their relationship for one more year which will see the Croatian remain at the club until 2023.
Los Blancos snapped Modric up for £30 million from Tottenham Hotspur in August 2012 and the Croatian has grown to become one of the best midfielders in the world and an important figure in Real Madrid. He turned around his poor debut season which saw him voted as one of the worst transfers in Europe at the time to become the blueprint for midfielders the world over.
Ten years on, at 36, he is still holding his own in Spain and Europe, having recently outclassed every other opponent in the middle of the park to help Madrid win their record-extending 14th UEFA Champions League title and the fifth of his highly-successful career.
He will also go down in history as the only player to break the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo duopoly on the Ballon d’Or since both players came into prominence on that stage in 2008.
His leadership ability and his immense talent which seems to get better with age have convinced Madrid to keep him for one more year as they build a tea, for the future. Modric will remain at the club to help with the transitions of Los Merengues’ future midfield trio of Aurelin Tchouameni, whose signing is expected to be announced soon, Eduardo Camavinga and Federico Valverde.
Modric’s new deal
Modric’s new deal carries a clause that could see Madrid extend his stay for another year if he maintains the same high standards he is known for
This season, he contributed three goals and 12 assists in 45 total appearances as Madrid added three more titles to their haul: the Supercopa de Espana, LaLiga and Champions League. Those three victories took his haul to 19 trophies since joining from Spurs in 2012 and saw his appearance tally rise up to 462 appearances in all competitions for the Spanish giants.
His wages under the new agreement are not yet public but it has been rumoured that he is taking a pay cut to continue playing for the club. Modric had previously stated his desire to retire at the club and will surely be looking forward to fulfilling his part of the deal to convince Real Madrid to extend his stay for one more year.
Following the announcement of his extension by Real Madrid, the Croatia national team captain took to his Twitter page to send a message to fans of the club. Modric tweeted: “I am very happy to announce that I am going to continue playing for the best club in the world. It has been ten years living a dream but I still have the ambition and the enthusiasm of the first day. Hala Madrid.”
