Real Madrid: Luka Modric wins the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award
By Ben Sundock
Real Madrid midfielder and Croatian captain Luka Modric won the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award on Thursday beating out both Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohammed Salah to win the title for the first time in his career.
Luka took home the big prize in Monaco on Thursday night as he won the most valuable player in Europe award, beating out several incredibly talented players who had a great 2017/2018 campaign.
Modric had an outstanding season with both club and country as he won yet another Champions League title, the FIFA Club World Cup, and guided his team to a second place finish in the FIFA World Cup.
Because of all these accolades and his incredible individual performances, the coaches in the UCL and the Europa League felt that he was the most deserving of all the players who participated in the two tournaments.
Here is a statement from the UEFA website as to why exactly Luka was chosen.
"“Modrić’s understated class was more evident than ever last season, the diminutive midfielder helping Madrid to a third straight UEFA Champions League title before then guiding his country to their first FIFA World Cup final. Though the 32-year-old is neither a prolific goalscorer nor an outright defensive shield, his dynamism and quality in possession set him apart.”"
Luka received 313 points in the voting, nearly 100 points above Ronaldo. While I agree that the Croatian had a career year and won nearly every competition, it was a bit surprising to see him finish so high above both Ronaldo and Salah who were fantastic in front of goal.
Ronaldo had won the title the last two seasons, but the Portuguese player could not beat out his former teammate this time around. Having won the Golden Ball at the World Cup, Luka was destined to win the accolade this season.
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The midfielder was pegged to leave the Spanish capital this summer with Inter Milan chomping at the bit to pay his release clause and bring him in. However, President Florentino Perez astutely resigned the number 10 to a new deal with better pay.
While the move to Milan seemed doubtful, there is simply no way it goes through now. Why would Real Madrid want to lose not only the best midfielder in the world, but the best player in Europe for this past season?
Congrats to Luka Modric on winning the award and congrats to Keylor Navas who was named UEFA’s Best Goalkeeper and Sergio Ramos who won the award for defensemen. Real Madrid once again dominated the award show as has been the case for several years now.