Luka Modric is not ruling out a return to Real Madrid, but the 40-year-old midfielder wants to make one thing clear: he will not come back just to wear the shirt again.
Speaking to Spanish newspaper AS in an interview reproduced by okdiario on 3 September, the Croatian said the door is open, but only on his own terms.
“I hope so. I would like to. To be honest, I don’t need to hide it. Madrid is my home and of course one day I would like to return. But we will see how and in what role, if that happens.”
“I don’t want to come back just for the sake of it, to be there for the sake of being there. That is not who I am. I want to be useful, I want to help Madrid. Not just to be there without knowing why I am there.”
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Only ‘to work for Real Madrid’
Modric framed any future role as service, not sentiment, invoking a line from the club’s new manager.
“Madrid has given me everything, it has given me an enormous amount, and I think I would only come back to do something useful, to do things properly and to work not at Real Madrid, but for Real Madrid.”
“As Mourinho said recently, we have to work for Real Madrid, to help it in any way, to make it greater and greater. That is the only way I would like to come back.”
Jose Mourinho was appointed Real Madrid head coach on 11 June on a three-year deal, succeeding Alvaro Arbeloa. Mourinho was also the manager who signed Modric from Tottenham in 2012.
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“You can already see from the first games that this is a different Madrid, a Madrid that frightens people, and I like that. Bringing in Mourinho, I think it is a very wise decision by the club, the best option for that job given the squad and everything.”
The Ronaldo verdict: 1,000 goals and playing ‘until 50’
The interview also turned to Modric’s long-time rival and friend. Asked whether Cristiano Ronaldo could reach 1,000 career goals, Modric had no hesitation, per Portuguese outlet Sapo.
“Cristiano is incredible; he is a phenomenon, a monster, and I have no doubt he will get to that number.”
“It is something incredible. I do not know how much longer he will want to keep playing, but he will keep scoring goals even if he wants to continue until the age of 50.”
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Second season at San Siro
Modric moved to AC Milan on a free transfer last year and is now into his second season at San Siro, working under new head coach Ruben Amorim, who was appointed on 16 June after leaving Manchester United.
He told AS he does not regret the switch, even if part of him still looks south.
“I also miss Madrid, the city, the club, everything. But I can say I feel good and I am happy here in Milan.”
“Milan is one of the best clubs in the world, a historic club that perhaps in recent years has not achieved the results that everyone was used to.”
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He said talks with Amorim and the club’s ownership convinced him to extend his stay rather than leave in November, with the target this season straightforward: “To do better than last year.”
Modric turns 41 on 9 September. Real Madrid’s next fixture is a LaLiga trip to Real Sociedad on 13 September.
