Luka Modric’s modric age story against England began on 11 October 2006, when he played the full match in Zagreb and Croatia won 2-0. He was only making his 11th cap, yet he was already in the middle of a rivalry that would stretch across 20 years.
Zagreb on 11 October 2006
That first meeting came in a European Championship qualifier, and Modric did not fade out of it. He lasted the entire match as Croatia handled England 2-0, a result that set the tone for how often he would trouble them after that night.
His first cap had come that same year in a friendly where Lionel Messi scored his debut goal for Argentina. By the time England arrived in Zagreb, Modric was still early in his international career, but he was already trusted to stay on for all 90 minutes.
England and Croatia again
England and Croatia met eight more times after that October 2006 game, and Modric missed only one of them because of a broken fibula. The lone absence came in 2009, when England beat Croatia 5-1.
The next year of the rivalry brought another sharp turn. Croatia beat England at Wembley in the “wally with a brolly” game, with Slaven Bilic in charge, while England needed only a draw to qualify for the Euros. Croatia had already sealed its place before that match.
Modric and Croatia's run
Modric’s club move also sits inside the same era. Before the Euros, he agreed to a transfer from Dinamo Zagreb to Tottenham, then kept moving through international tournaments as Croatia’s constant presence.
That continuity is what makes the England thread stand out. Croatia stormed through its Euro group with three wins, then went out in the quarter-finals against Turkey after taking the lead after 119 minutes, leaving Modric as the rare through-line across nearly two decades of Croatian success and frustration alike.
