Luka Modric pulled his shirt up over his face as he trudged over to the sideline. Croatia’s red-and-white-clad fans recognized the sorrowful significance of the moment and rose up to applaud the diminutive midfielder who is probably their nation’s greatest ever player. Argentina’s boisterous supporters soon followed suit at Lusail Stadium, honoring an opponent who is likely appearing at his last World Cup. Substituted in the 81st minute on Tuesday, with his team trailing by three goals, it effectively marked the end of Modric’s World Cup era. Croatia ended up losing to Argentina 3-0 in the semifinals, four years after the team lost to France in the final. Read: Argentina beat Croatia 3-0 to reach World Cup final Modric was somber as he was replaced by Lovro Majer before calmly taking his seat in the dugout. There was no grand gesture to the crowd or outpouring of emotion for a man whose understated brilliance can still be overlooked despite everything he has achieved. “We just wanted to be again in the final,” Modric said, “but unfortunately we are not.” The second most famous 37-year-old at the World Cup is going home, a few days after the other one. Modric is the same age as former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, but as both men approach the twilight of their trophy-laden careers, the contrast is stark. That was particularly evident leading up to and during the World Cup. While Ronaldo hogged the limelight with his explosive eve-of-the-tournament interview with Piers Morgan, Modric expressed himself on the field. After leading Croatia to the final in Russia, he was again the inspiration as a nation with a population of about 4 million made it to semifinals for the second straight World Cup. Read: Argentina erupts in joy after team reaches World Cup final Meanwhile, Ronaldo, amid the distraction of his exit from Manchester United and possible transfer to a club in Saudi Arabia, ended up benched and in tears as Portugal’s hopes were ended by Morocco in the quarterfinals. In Croatia’s quarterfinal match, Modric played his part in eliminating Brazil — and Neymar. But he couldn’t do anything to stop Lionel Messi on his personal mission to finally win soccer’s biggest trophy. Messi scored the opening goal from the penalty spot on Tuesday, and then produced a piece of magic to set up the second of Julian Alvarez’s two goals. But Messi wasn’t the only iconic figure on display at Lusail Stadium. Surely regarded by many as Croatia’s finest, Modric also ranks alongside the best midfielders to ever play the game. A five-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid, he also won soccer’s ultimate individual prize, the Ballon d’Or, in 2018. And his performances in Qatar show he still has more to give. He may yet play again for his national team at the 2024 European Championship with one final bow for his country. And who would rule out more trophies with Real Madrid? “Well, perhaps this is the end for the generation at the World Cup. A couple of them are at an age where it will be hard to play at the World Cup in 2026. We will wait and see,” Croatia coach Zlatko Dalić said. “I think a lot of players will finish off at Euro 2024.” Wherever Modric’s story goes from here, his status as a World Cup great is secure.

Luka Modric is making it easier for Real Madrid fans to start getting over Casemiro’s departure. A day after the Brazil midfielder announced he was ending his successful decade-long stint with Madrid to join Manchester United, his former teammate scored a beautiful goal and set up another to help the defending champion beat Celta Vigo 4-1 on Saturday for its second consecutive win to start the Spanish league. Modric's performance was worthy of applause even by Celta fans when the veteran was substituted in the second half. “It is always nice,” Modric said. “It makes me happy to be recognized by other fans.” Karim Benzema, Vinícius Júnior and Federico Valverde also scored as Madrid comfortably followed up its come-from-behind win at promoted Almería in the opener. It was Madrid’s first game since losing Casemiro, the trusted holding midfielder who had been one of the defensive anchors of the Spanish powerhouse. “We made history together here," Modric said. "He was a fundamental piece for us and we will miss him a lot, both as a player and as a person. We are sad that he left but it’s part of soccer. We have to move on without him and each one of us has to give something extra to make up for his absence.” Without the Brazilian, Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti set up the midfield with Eduardo Camavinga, newly signed Aurélien Tchouaméni and Modric, who had not started against Almería. The 36-year-old Modric took over the midfield on Saturday, controlling the pace both defensively and offensively. He scored his goal with a well-placed curling shot into the top corner after a nifty move to get past a defender at the top of the area in the 41st minute at Balaídos Stadium. "Modric is a fantastic leader for us,” Ancelotti said. “He played very well and scored the most important goal of the match because it put us ahead and made everything easier.” Read:Ancelotti says Casemiro wants to leave Real Madrid Benzema, Madrid’s top player last season, scored his first goal of this campaign by converting a 14th-minute penalty kick after video review spotted a handball by Celta midfielder Renato Tapia inside the area. Celta equalized with another penalty kick less than 10 minutes later, with Iago Aspas finding the net from the spot after a handball by Madrid defender Éder Militão. After putting his team ahead, Modric sent a nice through ball to Vinicius Júnior in a breakaway in the 56th, and the Brazil forward found the net after dribbling past Celta goalkeeper Agustín Marchesín. Some Celta fans stood to applaud Modric when he was substituted by Dani Ceballos in the 77th. Valverde closed the scoring after a pass by Vinícius Júnior in the 66th. Substitute Eden Hazard missed a chance to increase Madrid's lead when he missed a late penalty kick, with Marchesín saving his shot. In addition to Casemiro’s absence, Ancelotti also could not count on midfielder Toni Kroos because he had the flu. Forward Rodrygo was not in the squad because of an injury. Madrid is seeking back-to-back league titles since 2007-08. American midfielder Luca de la Torre entered the match in the 87th to make his Spanish league debut. BETIS WINS AGAIN Real Betis got its second victory in a row with Borja Iglesias converting a penalty kick in each half in a 2-1 win at Mallorca. Vedat Muriqi scored for the hosts, who were looking for their first victory after opening with a draw at Athletic Bilbao. Mallorca loudly complained against the officials because of the penalties. Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis had opened with a 3-0 win against Elche at home. OSASUNA ON A ROLL Osasuna also needed a penalty kick in each half to win its second consecutive match to start its campaign. After defeating Sevilla in the opener, Osasuna beat 10-man Cádiz 2-0 with Chimy Ávila and Kike García converting their shots from the penalty spot. Cádiz, coming off an opening loss to Real Sociedad at home, had Tomás Alarcón sent off with a second yellow card in the 76th. On Sunday, Barcelona will try to rebound from a disappointing opening draw at home when it visits Real Sociedad. Atlético Madrid goes for its second win in a row when it hosts Villarreal, while Gennaro Gattuso’s Valencia visits Ernesto Valverde’s Athletic.

Robert Lewandowski won the biggest individual prize of his career Thursday, showing that a forward not named Messi or Ronaldo can be voted the world’s best soccer player.