Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of the Portugal national team, described his Croatian rival Luka Modrić as a "legend in the world of football."
America 2026
The Portugal national team achieved a 2-1 victory over Croatia in an exciting match in the Round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup.
Ronaldo said in statements to Fox Sports after the match: "It was a confrontation that meant a lot to us, not only because we won the match, but because of the way we won it."
He added, "We knew it would be a difficult match because Croatia is a great team."
The exciting encounter saw 4 goals disallowed, 3 for Croatia and 1 for Portugal, all in the second half.
Regarding Modrić, he explained, "I played many matches with Luka Modrić, and we are close in age; he is a legend in the world of football."
Ronaldo and Modrić were teammates at Real Madrid from 2012 to 2018.
Ronaldo revealed the details of his conversation with Modrić: "I told him: I congratulate you on everything. I hope to see you again, and I wish you all the best in the coming years of your football career."
The Portuguese legend continued, "It was a pleasure to play against Modrić again."
He concluded, "The win was a tribute to Jota. It was a special day because we won, qualified for the next round, and paid tribute to him in the best possible way."
The victory came on the first anniversary of the death of Diogo Jota, the Portugal and Liverpool player, and the Portuguese players appeared after the match celebrating while wearing his number 21 jersey.
It also marked the end of an amazing Croatian era after achieving the 2018 World Cup silver and the 2022 bronze under the leadership of Luka Modrić and his teammates.
The Portugal national team qualified for the Round of 16 and will face Spain on July 6th.
