Luka Modrić

[serghei]

Different players IMO.

Xavi's vision was the best, but you can't deny that Modric is better in defending and carrying the ball forward.

Also, Xavi was a better passer too.

Different players. At CM peak Xavi is the best you can get probably in all football history. You can't touch him, can't dispossess him and he'll complete a very good pass 995 times out of 1000.

I see Modric more like an Iniesta with some Pirlo thrown in. But I'd place Iniesta above him slightly.

Don't think Modric is better at defending. He is better at shooting and dribbling forward.

 

[tacticvarium]

How dumb it is to compare Modrić to Xavi, Iniesta, Zidane..
They are not in the same league

 

[beck123]

Different players. At CM peak Xavi is the best you can get probably in all football history.

In Passing and positioning ? Yes, he is the best ever.

But there are a lot of more things that make a midfielder great, and Xavi didn't excel at them.

 

[KingLeo10]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rp6AfbOHM-c

08/09 xavi is final boss tier in terms of midfield prowess. something just clicked in him over the course of the 08 Euro and he turned into a monster. modric is great but he can't equal this.

 

[DonAndres]

How dumb it is to compare Modrić to Xavi, Iniesta, Zidane..
They are not in the same league

I'd say Modric isn't as far off Iniesta or Zidane as you'd like to think. I'd put him right in the tier below. Modric was the best player in the CL final of 3/4 of their victories. Even in 2016/17 he did definitively more in the final than CR. Neither Iniesta nor Zidane have done that at club level. Though internationally they blow Modric out of the water.

Xavi is on a tier of his own, even from Iniesta and Zidane.

 

[Barcaman]

 

[Givenchy]

don't do this to us dude

 

[Barcaman]

It kills me. I am not shitting on board as getting Cesc then made sense. But there is that "what if".

 

[Givenchy]

It kills me. I am not shitting on board as getting Cesc then made sense. But there is that "what if".

remember when he and Song were voted the worst signings? how time changes

 

[Morten]

In a different world, Modric would be ballon dor winner, Xavi and Iniesta as well.
Oh well, it doesnt matter that much, everybody with some basic football knowledge knows just how good Modric has been over the years.

 

[Andrew M]

Modric is probably better than Zidane overall.

When people think of Zidane they think of his great goals but he was pretty inconsistent.

 

[Science Kid]

In a different world, Modric would be ballon dor winner, Xavi and Iniesta as well.
Oh well, it doesnt matter that much, everybody with some basic football knowledge knows just how good Modric has been over the years.

If Croatia wins the World Cup while Portugal loses in the 1/8 finals (or loses to Iran) he's winning it.

 

[Morten]

If Croatia wins the World Cup while Portugal loses in the 1/8 finals (or loses to Iran) he's winning it.

No.
Top 3 perhaps, but Ronaldo and Messi takes top 2.

 

[serghei]

In Passing and positioning ? Yes, he is the best ever.

But there are a lot of more things that make a midfielder great, and Xavi didn't excel at them.

Well, passing, movement and overall ball control are probably the 3 most important thing for a central midfielder. Xavi was a master at all 3 to a degree that isn't accessible to other midfielders, and that includes Modric.

 

[Morten]

Its difficult to compare Modric to Xavi, different type of players as well, no one better to control a game than Xavi, though Modric can control the game as well.
I think of Modric more as the ultimate box to box midfielder, he is excellent covering space as he is going forward with the ball, hardly any weaknesses to his game, though i guess the "ultimate" box to box midfielder perhaps scores a bit more often than Modric does.