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Hello! We’ve spent years in Luka Modric’s world. But not for much longer.
On the way:
🇭🇷 Brutal night for Croatia
🇮🇹 Italy’s title defence clings on
🇧🇷 Blank Copa night for Brazil
🇺🇸 McKennie to FC Cincinnati?
Euros Zone: Goodbye Luka Modric? This was tournament football at its most brutal
Luca Modric’s Euro 2024 experience — most likely his last — has been the three stages of wholly reluctant surrender.
He sat soul-destroyed in the wake of a hammering by Spain. There was child-like desperation in his face after Albania mugged Croatia in stoppage time. He had his shirt in his teeth as Italy sprung the latest of ambushes on him last night. Has ever a force of nature looked more haunted?
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Modric normally has an answer for everything. Those feet were built to dig his team out of any hole. But not this time. Croatia are almost certainly out of Euro 2024. Modric’s days in international football are numbered. Portugal’s Pepe might have everlasting life but Modric’s powers are waning, the speed of thought and passing no longer as they once were.
And yet, until Italy stole a 1-1 draw in the 98th minute, Modric — whose receipt of the player-of-the-match award, above, was a picture of tragedy — was seconds away from the guarantee of one more rodeo in Croatia colours. There was a marvellous 33-second period in which Gianluigi Donnarumma saved the midfielder’s penalty, only to see Modric rattle the ball past him as Croatia came again.
The pile-on was joyous: bodies all over Modric, with no regard for his creaking bones. And he takes with him the record of being the European Championship’s oldest goalscorer, at 38 years and 289 days. It’s a small consolation for reality going in two-footed on a generational star. Adios.
Italy risks rewarded
If you’re trying to picture Italy at their recent best, it’s Leonardo Bonucci on the advertising boards at Wembley, or Donnarumma with the wingspan of a sea eagle — the keys to them claiming the Euro 2020 crown.
That was then but this is now and the defending champions are scraping by. Take nothing away from Mattia Zaccagni’s brilliant, nerveless equaliser — reminiscent of Alessandro Del Piero at the 2006 World Cup — but without it, Italy would have been clinging to the hope of advancing to the last 16 as a lucky third-placed team.
Their coach, Luciano Spalletti, is a feisty fellow. And he has a catchphrase: uomini forti, destini forti (stand up and be counted, and fortune might smile on you). He took risks when it mattered against Croatia. Italy live to fight another day.
Stress-free Spain
The emotion around Spain is entirely different. They’ve cruised through Group B. They’ve endured zero stress. They’ve gone from so-so contenders to having every chance.
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They put Albania away yesterday, which is a shame. Like Georgia, Albania brought a good bottle of fizz to the party in Germany. There’s a danger of these competitions expanding too far. Albania helped to make the argument that, in terms of nations at the Euros, the more the merrier.
Our England oracle
On all things England, I defer to the wisdom of The Athletic’s Jack Pitt-Brooke. And so, midway through a 1-0 win over Serbia in their first group match, I bookmarked this tweet of his about Conor Gallagher replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold:
“This feels like a substitution England will make every game in the group stage — and by the knockouts, it will just be Gallagher starting instead.”
Bang on. And in fact, sooner than even Jack anticipated. Yesterday, David Ornstein ran the news that Gallagher will replace Alexander-Arnold in the starting line-up against Serbia today. Never let it be said that Gareth Southgate is predictable. Or that England are grasping for solutions.
Catch a match
(Times in ET/UK): Group D: France vs Poland (12pm/5pm) — Fox, Fubo, BBC One, live blog; Netherlands vs Austria (12pm/5pm) — Fox Sports 1, Fubo, BBC Two, live blog; Group C: England vs Slovenia (3pm/8pm) — Fox, Fubo, ITV1, live blog; Denmark vs Serbia (3pm/8pm) — Fox Sports 1, Fubo, ITV4.
Dutch Debate
At any major tournament such as the Euros (assuming they’ve qualified), you’ll find at least one Ruud Gullit lookalike among the Netherlands’ orange army. Gullit is a national hero. He lifted the trophy at Euro ’88.
Fancy dress like that, though, makes many people uncomfortable, and the debate over the racist connotations of ‘blackface’ is intense among the Dutch, as it is in other parts of the world. In the United States, for instance, when used as an insult or out of ignorance, blackface is viewed as dehumanising and highly offensive to many African Americans.
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It goes beyond football, and much of this piece by Jacob Whitehead concerns Zwarte Piet (Black Pete), traditionally cast as one of Santa Claus’ helpers in the Netherlands.
The issue is complex and it sprung up again after three Dutch fans were pictured mocked up as Gullit in Germany. Gullit, 61, has been reported as saying he doesn’t mind. Nathan Ake, a mixed-race member of the Dutch squad, agrees.“Ruud Gullit already said he finds it an honour,” Ake said.
“Let’s stop making a problem out of things like this.” But others feel very differently, and the argument isn’t going away.
DealSheet 📝
Some short snaps from The Athletic’s weekly Transfer DealSheet:
- He might be injury-prone but David Ornstein thinks there’s a fair chance Dominic Calvert-Lewin will leave Everton before the end of the month. Newcastle United are pretty keen.
- Didn’t see this coming. Joselu, after his Champions League exploits, won’t be staying with Real Madrid. His choice, too.
- So many clubs like Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams, as they should. But is anyone going to pony up the cash?
- Weston McKennie from Juventus to… FC Cincinnati. Seemingly this is not pie in the sky.
Copa Corner: Brazil draw a blank
Brazil weighed into the Copa America last night — and made a meal of it.
Nineteen shots on goal, 48 touches in the opposition’s box and 74 per cent of possession conspired to yield a 0-0 draw with Costa Rica. In the stands, an injured Neymar was not digging the substitution of Vinicius Junior.
Truth be told, the real intrigue at the Copa lies away from the two big hitters, Brazil and Argentina. Uruguay look well worth the entrance fee — they have scored A+ in our rankings — and Colombia’s impetus is not to be sniffed at.
Over in Houston, the Colombians beat Paraguay 2-1, with two sexy assists from James Rodriguez, a man who always does it for his country. Don’t take your eyes off them.
Marsch and motivation
Canada go again today, with game two against Peru. Jesse Marsch has been employing motivational speaking techniques with his squad, leaning on soundbites from Roger Federer.
Marsch likes an emotive quote. I discovered that when he managed Leeds United. Let’s just say it didn’t always land well.
Catch a match
(Times in ET/UK): Group A: Peru vs Canada (6pm/11pm) — Fox Sports 1, Fubo, Premier Sports 1; Chile vs Argentina (9pm/2am) — Fox Sports 1, Fubo, Premier Sports 1.
Around The Athletic FC 🌎
- The story of the USMNT at Copa ’95, and their pay dispute, is a belter. I’m here for this quote from coach Steve Sampson: “All right, f***ers. You got what you wanted. Now it’s time to live up to this.”
- Tim Spiers has had his say on the criticism of Harry Kane. If his paragraph on the 2038 World Cup in the Gulf state of FIFA Corp doesn’t win the Pulitzer Prize, I don’t know what will.
- Slovenia’s Josip Ilicic appearing at Euro 2024 after illness and mental health struggles is a personal triumph. He was an outcast at his club as recently as last summer.
- Following on from yesterday’s TAFC, questions are being asked about Premier League clubs using young players to farm PSR-friendly transfer fees. Quite right.
(Top picture – Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
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