I'm the little man who can, says Modric

Manager Carlo Ancelotti heaped praise on Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric after the 39-year-old Croatian worked his magic with a terrific assist to help Vinicius Jr score the winner in a hard-fought 2-1 LaLiga win at Celta Vigo on Saturday.

A stunning strike from long range by Kylian Mbappe that gave Real Madrid the lead in the 20th minute was cancelled out by a counter-attack effort netted by Swedish forward Williot Swedberg in the 51st minute, but Modric climbed off the bench to break help Real break the deadlock.

"It is an honour to coach and work with Modric, everything he has been able to achieve is because he is a fantastic professional and a man of the highest calibre," Ancelotti told reporters.

"When they equalised I think the changes gave a new energy to the team. It's a very important victory. These are two spectacular goals from players that showed they have an amazing talent, from the build-up to the finish. They train really hard and have put on a great effort during this international break to improve their conditions, we have to keep going.

"We competed well, the team was committed the whole game, Celta played well and with intensity, we won three points thanks to a fantastic pass from Modric, he has this quality and always contributes.

"It doesn't matter if it is when he starts or when he comes off the bench... he always helps us. He came on at a difficult moment in the match and changed the script."

Real are second in the LaLiga standings on 24 points, level with leaders Barcelona who have a game in hand and host Sevilla on Sunday. They will host Borussia Dortmund in a Champions League clash on Tuesday, before hosting their bitter rivals Barca in a much anticipated LaLiga Clasico on Saturday.

Ilkay Gundogan has signed for Barcelona on a free transfer at the end of his Manchester City contract while Luka Modric will stay at Real Madrid for another season after renewing his deal until June 2024.

The German midfielder Gundogan, 32, has agreed a two-year deal with the option for a year's extension and a release clause of 400 million euros ($436 million).

"He is bringing his presence, nose for goal and reading of the game which has made him one of the best midfielders of the past decade," said Barcelona in a statement.

Gundogan has been an influential presence for Pep Guardiola's City side since joining in 2016, captaining the team to a stunning treble this season.

The midfielder netted twice in the FA Cup final win over rivals Manchester United and Guardiola admitted City were trying to renew his deal.

Gundogan joined City from Borussia Dortmund, where he won the Bundesliga and German Cup in 2012.

In Manchester he scored 60 goals in 304 appearances for City.

Meanwhile, Modric, 37, decided to stay at Real Madrid despite strong interest from Saudi Arabia, looking to recruit him at the end of his previous contract, which expires this month.

The Croatian follows Toni Kroos, Dani Ceballos and Nacho Fernandez in extending his time at Madrid this summer.

"In his 11 seasons defending our shirt, he has played 488 games and won 23 trophies," said Real Madrid in a statement.

Modric has lifted the Champions League five times with Madrid since joining in 2012 from Tottenham, as well as La Liga on three occasions and two Copas del Rey.

Turning 38 in September, 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Modric faces stiff competition next season at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Madrid signed England international Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund for over 100 million euros ($109 million) earlier in June, while Kroos, Ceballos, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni and Fede Valverde are jostling for places.

Youngster Bellingham said at his presentation he was looking forward to learning from Modric and Kroos in particular.

Ever wonder how your favourite footballer rose to success? For many footballers, it was not as simple as being scouted or joining a football academy where their only concern was the sport. Many footballers have a life filled with harsh memories, losses, financial struggles, and displacement. Their stories are inspirational as they persevered and came out of their hardship for themselves and their families. 

Here are some of the inspirational stories which haunt some of our favourite footballers: 

Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal

Cristiano was not a legend by birth, but he made a decision early on that most certainly changed his life. He decided to become the world's best despite growing up on the remote island of Madeira in Portugal, to a family that struggled to make ends meet and a father struggled with alcoholism. Ronaldo's mother was the sole provider of the family and made sure of their financial security, supporting the family by working as a chef and a maid. Due to their dreadful financial conditions, Ronaldo's three siblings and he shared a room as a child. Despite coming from a financially unstable family, he still found time to pursue his dreams and play the sport he loved.

He had such a passion for the game that when they were unable to purchase a ball, he would make one out of rags and bottles. Indeed, Ronaldo's talent was recognised, and after competing for two amateur teams on the island, he was given the chance to train with Sporting CP, one of Portugal's most prestigious football clubs. However, this recognition did not come without sacrifice. At the young age of 11, he had to make the decision of leaving his home and his family. Fortunately, this sacrifice led him on the path to achieving his dream and stardom.

In just six years, his talent, commitment to training, and skill on the field led him to becoming the youngest player ever to sign with Europe's most prominent professional football league, Manchester United. Since then, Ronaldo has amassed an impressive list of achievements. When Ronaldo transferred from Manchester United to Real Madrid in 2009 for a reported 94 million euros, he set a new record for the most expensive football player ever. Some people regard him as the top player in the world right now.

Lionel Messi, Argentina 

Messi has been a football prodigy since he was young. He could easily slip to the goalpost due to his small height. However, he has trouble scoring due to a significant growth hormone deficit. His family was unable to pay for his care. Messi's father issued Barcelona an ultimatum when they first learned of him, saying that he would only allow his son to play if they paid for his medical care. Barcelona agreeing to this ultimatum paid off well as Messi is now one of the most popular footballers in the world and recognised as one of the world's top goal scorers. Messia, who formerly could not afford medical care, now has two opulent homes—one in Barcelona and one in his home country Argentina and multiple other lavish investments.  

Neymar Jr, Brazil

Neymar experienced extreme poverty and a deprived upbringing. His father supported his family by working three jobs. Their poverty was so extreme that their electricity went out at times. Neymar claimed that while he was growing up, his parents could not even buy the most basic necessities. When his mother could not afford to buy him a cookie one day, he assured her that he would soon become very wealthy from his career in football and purchase a large cookie factory. Although he and his family have gone through financial hardships and struggles, Neymar is now among the most well-known and expensive players in the world, and the cookie factory is no longer a dream. 

Angel Di Maria, Argentina 

When Di Maria was young, he worked in a coal mine with his sisters and father while living in extreme poverty. As a child, he was quite restless. In order to channel his bursting energy, Di Maria's doctor advised him to participate in sports, thus beginning his football journey. He became proficient in street football but his financial distress prevented his parents from investing in his football career. When he was noticed by scouts and recruiters, he would often request to be paid in footballs so that he could play more. His passion for the sport grew deeper and eventually, Di Mara joined the local club, Rosario Central, in 1995 and completed the youth program in 2005. 

His life in poverty is all in the past; he is widely considered one of the world's best wingers in the world and signed with Benfica at the age of 19 in 2007. With him on the team, Benfica won its first league title in five years, the Primeira Liga, and two Taça da Liga titles. From there, he joined Real Madrid in 2010 proving himself to be a versatile footballer. 

Gabriel Fernando de Jesus, Brazil

In Sao Paulo's northern sprawl, in the Jardim Peri neighbourhood, Jesus spent his childhood where street football became his passion. His family dynamics had a role to play in the footballer he is today as his father had abandoned the family and his mother, Vera Lucia, instilled in him values of discipline and hard work. Vera worked as a domestic help to make ends meet and raise Jesus and his older siblings on her own. To this day, Vera and Jesus share an impenetrable bond and respect for each other. 

Jesus is adored by those who knew him as a child now, and he still feels a deep connection to the neighbourhood. Today, he has become a local hero at Palmeiras and a role model to the younger players.

Luis Suarez, Uruguay 

Suarez was raised in a family of nine. Although he excelled at football, he lacked the proper footwear and was unable to invest in any. According to reports, Suarez worked as a street sweeper when he met his wife and collected pennies from the streets to buy her a date. 

Today, Suarez's net worth is reported to have around $84 million, and has multiple brand endorsements with Adidas, Pepsi, and tourism Malaysia. Affording dates and worrying about how his meal would come is a worry of the past; he and his family live in comfort in Barcelona where he owns an individual villa along with many luxury cars.

Luka Modric, Croatia 

Luka grew up in a run-down motel with his refugee family as a Croatian. He had a childhood marred by conflict. The 1991-1995 war with Serbian rebels, during which Zadar and the surrounding region were heavily shelled, toughened Modric. He would travel through bombing and seek our shelter with his friends on their way to training. Moreover, at the age of six, his family was compelled to leave their house because of Croatia's war of independence from Serbia, and took shelter in refugee camps. When the coach of a nearby football academy discovered the youngster playing football in the hotel parking lot, the family could barely afford to feed him properly. He was taken in by the academy, where he had to train under watchful eyes with everyone else prepared to flee for their lives if grenades started falling on the practice fields. 

Persevering in a literal battlefield, Luka is now among the top midfielders in the world and wears the Nike Mercurial Vapour 14 cleats for all his club and international games. Additionally, he is the brand ambassador of Nike, SofaScore, and OlyBet, and also works with multiple charities. 

Victor Moses, Nigeria

Victor Moses was born in Lagos, Nigeria, where he received little formal education and had no knowledge of the English language. His parents were killed in a religious dispute while he was watching a street football game that he used to play. In dire need of financial assistance, family and friends shifted the 11-year-old to London as an asylum seeker since his life was also in danger in Lagos. After being ultimately placed in a foster home in London, he was awarded a scholarship and allowed to enrol in the Crystal Palace academy.

Moses is now one of the richest and most influential footballers in Nigeria. The veteran footballer owns a mansion in Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria with a state-of-the-art swimming pool, kitchen, gym, cinema, and advanced security systems, and lives blissfully with his wife and children. His garage might be an illustration of how successful Moses' career has been which houses a Mercedes Benz AMG G63 valued at 135,000 pounds and Ford Edge valued at 35,000 dollars along with Aston Martin, Ferrari 458 Italia, BMW i8, and so on. 

Carlos Bacca, Colombia

Bacca worked as a bus driver's assistant up until the age of 20. He also had a side job as a fisherman because this was not enough for him to make ends meet. He participated in local competitions until getting his big break at the age of 23 when he made it to a professional league.
He now makes a strike for Colombia however, his career is filled with many club transfers. Bacca's goal-scoring prowess has taken the spotlight and rapidly gained his position as one of Europe's deadliest attackers. Bacca's career has undoubtedly exceeded his wildest expectations, especially given that he grew up in poverty in Puerto Colombia and struggled to make ends meet.

Belgium finished third in the World Cup, their best-ever performance, when they beat England 2-0 with an early Thomas Meunier goal and a breakaway finished by Eden Hazard in Saturday's playoff between the losing semi-finalists.

Meunier finished off a devastating move when he turned in Nacer Chadli's low cross at the far post in the fourth minute after Romelu Lukaku's pass sliced open the English defence.

Belgium, who beat England 1-0 in a group match in the tournament, were more dangerous throughout a lively first half. But England improved after the break and nearly equalised when Eric Dier got clear and chipped over Thibaut Courtois, only for Toby Alderweireld to make a sliding clearance off the line.

Belgium continued to threaten on the break and finished off the game when Kevin de Bruyne set Hazard clear and he swept his shot past Jordan Pickford.

Can Croatia cross one final hurdle come Sunday night and become the ninth nation to win the World Cup? Standing in their way are France, whose sole ambition will be to claim that coveted piece of glory for the second time at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.

As an independent nation, Croatia might not have a rich history as far as their participation in the biggest show on Earth is concerned but since their World Cup debut in 1998, eight years after being liberated from Yugoslavia, it has been a spectacular journey for them.

Coincidentally, it was also the year that France became the seventh nation to win the World Cup, which was on their home soil, by defeating Brazil 3-0 in the final.

More interestingly, it was France who shattered Croatia's dreams by defeating their first 'golden generation' in the semifinal of that tournament 2-1, thanks to two quick blows from Les Bleus defender Lilian Thuram after Croatia's Davor Suker had scored in the 46th minute.

Even in that defeat, Croatia became only the second team after Portugal to have the best finish as debutants. They were placed third following a 2-1 win over Holland in the position deciding game, where Suker scored his sixth goal to win the Golden Boot.

If that was a big statement by an up and coming footballing nation, then the exploits of their next generation, now marshalled by Luka Modric, is no less spectacular as they have reached the finals despite a below-par qualifying campaign.

Croatia launched their campaign in Russia with a 2-0 win against Nigeria before pulling off a magnificent 3-0 win against two-time winners Argentina. They beat Iceland in the last group league game to move into the round of 16 with the maximum number of points.

And in the last three knockout games, where they had to battle it out beyond regulation time, Croatia showed tenacity and the will to fight till the end.

Croatia's round of 16 game against Denmark was a classic example of their never-say-die attitude. After conceding an early goal, they equalised and took the game to extra time, where Modric missed a penalty. However, the Real Madrid midfielder showed courage and stepped up in the shootout to convert his spot kick.

In the quarterfinal against hosts Russia, which they won in the shootout after a 2-2 draw, they faced a similar scenario. This was also the case in the semifinal against England before Mario Mandzukic hit the winner in the 109th minute.

The Juventus forward might not be as prolific as Suker was on the big stage but he has the knack of scoring goals from out of nowhere. Croatia actually have individual winners in Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Ante Rebic and Ivan Perisic, the Inter Milan forward who has been in fine form.

Croatia's last three games might have started slowly but gradually picked up with the progression of the game, which is a hallmark of a good team.

They also showed how athletically fit they are as they had to play for 120 minutes in all three previous games.

Against England at Saint Petersburg, many thought it would be impossible for them to survive if the game went beyond regulation time. Surprisingly though, it was England who slowed down as the game progressed. In addition, when the Turkish referee blew the final whistle, Croatia were heading for another crack at the goal.

France midfielder Paul Pogba previously said that he wants to earn his own star on the shirt on Sunday. However, the world will not be surprised to a see the birth of a new star.