Real Madrid confirm Modric contract extension
Luka Modric said he was "happy and proud" after Real Madrid confirmed that the Croatian veteran midfielder will remain at the club for one more season.
With the season now over, Real Madrid has begun to take its first official steps towards 2021-22 with the announcement that Luka Modric has signed a contract extension that will see him remain at the club for at least one more season. The veteran midfielder’s deal was set to end on June 30 and with this renewal until June 2022, it means that the Croatian will celebrate his 36th birthday as a Madridista.
The renewal is the just reward for Modric's hard work this season and the agreement between the two parties has been in place for about three months, as this newspaper has previously published and as Madrid president Florentino Pérez recently confirmed in an interview with radio program El Larguero.
Modric has been a key figure for coach Zinedine Zidane this season, as evident from his 57 total games played for Los Blancos during the campaign, not to those played for Croatia, which is quite impressive for a player of his advanced age.
"Happy and proud to continue wearing the shirt of the best team in the world,” tweeted Modric following the announcement on Tuesday afternoon.
After enjoying a brief one-week vacation, he will reconvene with his Croatian team mates ahead of Euro 2021, where they will be looking to replicate their final-reaching success at the 2018 World Cup.
Modric still in his physical prime at Real Madrid
Modric remains faithful to the Madrid cause and that faith has been mutual on the part of the club towards the Croatian, who arrived at the Bernabéu from Tottenham Hotspur in 2012 for €35 million.
On several occasions he has acknowledged that he still sees himself in his physical prime, thanks in part to his work with a kinesiology guru in Zagreb back in his native Croatia.
"Luka is incredible," said Zidane last week. The French coach continues to heap praise on the stalwart central midfielder, making him a permanent starter since his goal in the 3-1 win in the Camp Nou Clásico back in October.
Whether it will be Zidane or a new name on the Bernabéu bench next season, the squad will continue to count on Modric's experience for at least another year.