The ‘god of soccer’ and ‘Mozart of midfield’, who declared the last World Cup, will bet on the fate of the team and their own football life. Legends of Argentina and Croatia, Lionel Messi (35, Paris Saint-Germain) and Luka Modric (37, Real Madrid) will meet in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Qatar World Cup held at Lusail Stadium in Aldayen, Qatar at 4 am on the 14th.
This is the third time the two teams have faced each other in the World Cup, and they traded one win each in the previous two encounters. In this match where the ticket to the finals is at stake, one of Messi and Modric will say goodbye to the World Cup stage with a real ‘last dance’.
This is Messi’s 5th World Cup and Modric’s 4th World Cup. Both of them have declared that this World Cup is their last World Cup. That’s why the concentration we put into the game is higher than ever.
Messi and Modric, both in their mid-30s, are burning a brilliant flame in Qatar. Messi recorded 4 goals and 2 assists in this tournament, tying Gabriel Batistuta’s record for the most goals scored in the World Cup by an Argentine player with 10 goals and 7 assists in his personal World Cup career. In addition, he set a new record by surpassing Diego Maradona’s record for the most attack points (16) in the World Cup by an Argentine player. Messi has played 24 games in the World Cup alone, and is close to Lothar Matheus (Germany)’s record of most appearances in the World Cup finals (25 games), but if he does not get injured, he will write a new record. Messi, who is breaking various personal records in the World Cup, has only one goal left, the championship trophy. Messi’s determination ahead of the final gateway to the final is bound to be special.
Modric is also displaying a brilliant veteran fighting spirit. Throughout this tournament, he is constantly injecting energy into the Croatian midfield based on his accurate passing ability and vigorous activity. In the quarterfinal match against Brazil, which was a critical moment, he made 115 passes, the most among both teams, with a whopping 91.3% success rate.
Modric commanded the team’s runner-up blast at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and won the Golden Ball with two goals and one assist. And he won the Ballon d’Or that year. Having reached the semi-final stage for the second time in a row, he is determined in front of an opportunity to win the World Cup that will never come again.
In the confrontation between Messi and Modric, it seems that the watershed of the game will be how much help from teammates helps. 메이저사이트
Argentina scored nine goals from the group stage to the quarterfinals, and Messi was directly or indirectly involved in six of them. As long as Messi is the central axis, Argentina’s attack always makes the opponent’s defense nervous. If attackers such as Enso Fernandez (Benfica) and Julian Alvarez (Manchester City) can properly connect Messi’s passes into goals, the match can be surprisingly easy.
Croatia boasts its strongest midfield lineup, with Modric, Mateo Kovacic (Chelsea) and Marcello Brozovic (Inter Milan). It seems that the organic play of the midfielder will attack the Argentine defense. As Modric’s stamina was depleted as he went through the round of 16 and the quarterfinals to penalty shootouts, how much can jokers such as Nicola Blasic (Torino) and Robro Mayer (Stade Rennes), who will be put in as replacements, alleviate Modric’s burden? It is also important whether there is