Luka Modric took the pitch one last time at the Santiago Bernabeu on 24th May 2025. Captaining the side against Real Sociedad in what is his last home game in a white shirt. Real Madrid won the game 2-0 thanks to another brace by Kylian Mbappe but the game had an overarching theme of goodbyes. 28 trophies and 13 years later, the most successful player in the club’s history was leaving.
Along with Modric, Los Blancos’ most successful manager, Carlo Ancelotti, took charge of his final game with the club. The man who was responsible for the La Decima bids adieu along with the player who played that decisive pass in that final. Lucas Vazquez, an academy graduate who has played 400 games in white, also bid farewell to what has been his home his entire life.
On the other side, Real Sociedad’s manager Imanol Alguacil also bid farewell to them, after ending their 34-year long trophy drought with a Copa del Rey win in 2019-20 season against Basque rivals Athletic Club.
It wasn’t a usual game. It marked the closure of an era.
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The Croatian accompanied Fede Valverde and Dani Ceballos in the midfield. Playing 86 minutes, Modric did all he has always done on the field. He covered the pitch laterally, supported play, circulated possession, dropped a shoulder and won the ball back the same way he did 13 years ago. He was marshalling that midfield with the same vigour he did in all those glory years, in the most tense situations. He plugged the gaps and chased the ball like a youngster gunning for more minutes.
He could still run with the ball and beat the youngsters on the pitch, while bouncing off challenges despite his frame. The 173cm tall magician towered over everyone on the field thanks to his incredible technical talent. Floating when others on the pitch can barely walk, gluing the ball to his feet and dancing around the rest of the midfielders. Modric’s game was a perfect symphony, so effortless on the eyes and yet captivating.
In his last game in front of the home fans, Modric finished the game as the player with most touches (133), most passes (123), most final third entries (22), most crosses (7) in the game. His 123 passes this game is the most by any Madrid player in a La Liga game this season, walking away writing yet another record to his name.
Before walking off the carpet one last time at the Bernabeu, the 39-year-old exchanged the most passes with a 20-year-old starlet, in line to replicate a part of his success at the club, Arda Guler. No player played more passes to Modric against La Real than Guler (26) and no player received more passes from the maestro than him (22). Signalling a passing of the baton moment, if there was any.
24th May will forever be associated with Modric. The man who brought home our #10, leaves the pitch one last time as our #10. Football can be cruel like that.
In Modric’s own words, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened”.