Modrić: “I’m happy with how my contract negotiations are going”

Luka Modrić was the player selected to speak ahead of the Spanish Super Cup match against Athletic Club, and it’s no surprise that his contract situation was brought up during the press conference held on Wednesday night.

Asked about the negotiations, he said: “My situation with Real Madrid… I can’t say much. I’m speaking with the club and it’s all going in a good direction. I can’t say more now, but I’m happy with how this is going.”

Modrić went on to explain how the team is feeling, having been on the road since last Friday because the adverse weather prevented them from returning to the capital. He said: “We feel good. We’ve been in Málaga for three days now and we’ve been preparing well. We feel good as a team and I do too. We know this is a very important match. We’re keen to play it. I don’t think there are favourites for this tournament, but we’ll give our all to fight for another title. First, we need to win tomorrow’s match.”

Pressed on the state of the pitch at El Sadar on Saturday night against Osasuna, the midfielder wanted to move on from that controversy. He replied: “It wasn’t ideal, but not everything is ideal in life. So, I don’t think it makes sense to speak about this much more. We’d only be losing time. I don’t think the players or the coach have looked for excuses.”

Another big talking point of the press conference was Zinedine Zidane’s lack of rotations in recent months. Asked for his thoughts on this, Modrić said: “The coach has decided to use more or less the same block of players, but we know that every player here is important. They know that they need to perform when it’s their turn. The coach will give opportunities to all, as he has always done. Then it’s up to the players to perform. But, it don’t see any problem with not rotating so much. But, I’m sure the coach will rotate when he thinks it’s the right moment.”

Martin Ødegaard isn’t being used much and Modrić was asked what advice he’d give the youngster. The veteran replied: “I like him as a player and as a person. The only advice I can give him is to keep working and fighting for his place. When he plays, he needs to make a difference to show he deserves to be here. That’s the only advice I can give him.”

Finally, he spoke about his good form and what he’s doing to keep playing at such a high level, saying: “I’m doing the same things. I have the same motivation to play and compete. I want to show that you don’t always have to look at how old someone is, but at what someone is doing on the pitch.”