Modric 'ashamed' of Croatia's 'catastrophic night'

What the report says

Croatia captain Luka Modric said he felt ashamed after his team’s 7-0 home defeat to England in the Nations League, calling it a catastrophic night and saying it was the first time in about 20 years as an international that he had felt that way. The BBC Sport report said the 41-year-old midfielder, who recently agreed to continue his Croatia career under returning coach Slaven Bilic, made his 205th appearance for the national team in Rijeka.

England were already 5-0 ahead when Modric was substituted in the 57th minute. Harry Kane scored twice, while Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon, Bukayo Saka, and later Saka again plus Morgan Rogers added to the scoreline. Modric said Croatia had been outplayed and lacked duels, aggression, togetherness and overall quality in a match he described as unacceptable.

The defeat came after Croatia had started Bilic’s second spell with a win over the Czech Republic and then lost heavily away to Spain. BBC Sport noted that Croatia had been level on points with England before the match and had a chance to move into a strong position in Group A3, where the top two advance. Croatia now face Spain next, before finishing the group against England and the Czech Republic, with their place in the top tier still under threat.