How England silenced Ballon d'Or winner Modric in World Cup win

The performance at the Dallas Stadium was a classic 'Tale of Two Halves'. The first was mixed for England who despite scoring two goals, went into half-time level at 2-2 after Croatia took advantage of some lacklustre defending from the Three Lions. 

The second half saw England come charging out of the blocks and put the game out of Croatia's reach, providing a glimpse of what this squad is capable of. 

In addition to the result, this match served as the latest chapter in a rivalry between two sides who often meet at major tournaments, and it was Croatia who broke English hearts in the 2018 World Cup semi-final. 

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One player who stood out, to no one's surprise, is midfielder Luka Modric, who on Wednesday appeared in his fifth World Cup at the age of 40. 

There were concerns as to whether England could cope with Modric and the influence he could have on a match, but in front of thousands in Dallas, England passed this test with flying colours. 

'We really targeted Modri, got around him and didn't let him dictate the game' 

For the 57 minutes he was on the pitch, Modric did very little. 

You could argue his only meaningful contribution benefitted England when his foul on Noni Madueke in the 12th minute resulted in the penalty to put the Three Lions ahead. 

In order to negate Modric, players need to give him little to no time on the ball and cut out any space he might have to move his team up the pitch. 

This was something Gary Neville noticed in his analysis on ITV Sport, and he singled out one England midfielder in particular who was vital in the team's efforts to stop the Croatian. 

"At the start of the game, what we were worried about was whether Luka Modric was going to run the game; that didn’t happen," Neville said.

"Obviously, he’s a great player, but he went off after 55 minutes; it was just too much for him.

"Elliot Anderson in particular, we really targeted him, got around him and didn’t let him dictate the game."

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The fact that England chose to be on the front foot rather than absorb the pressure, in Neville's eyes, showed a mentality shift among the Three Lions. 

"In years gone by, England teams have stood off players like that and let them have 100 passes; these lads didn’t do that today."

Did Modric's age work against Croatia? 

In an interview before the match, Modric was asked if "Age was just a number" when it came to his playing career. He did not give much away in his answer, but with a sly smile, Modric would have been eager to prove his doubters wrong when it comes to delivering football's biggest stage. 

Unfortunately for him, it was a performance to forget. 

While you can understand why Croatia manager Zlatko Dalic played Modric, it would be foolish not to, there was always a chance he would be overrun by an England midfield of Anderson, Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham. 

"That’s the problem when you’re playing in the middle of the park, your experience can be vital," former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane said during ITV's coverage of the match. 

"But if you’re not at it and people are running over you, that experience can cost you. He’s 40 years of age, and England dominated midfield and that was a big part of winning the game.

"I don’t think England paid Modric any respect in that sense, and you’re not supposed to."

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With matches against Ghana and Panama to come, Modric will likely find these easier outings, but for England, being successful in taking a Ballon d'Or winner out of the match will bode well if they go on a deep run. 

Many of the top contenders have a talisman who can turn a match on its head; some examples include France's Kylian Mbappe and Argentina captain Lionel Messi. 

If England come up against teams of that stature in the latter stages of the World Cup, then they should be confident of taking out the key threats to give themselves the best chance of winning, albeit it will be a harder task compared to a 40-year-old Modric.

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