Croatia captain Luka Modric expressed his disbelief after his team crashed out of the FIFA World Cup 2026 after losing to Portugal in their Round of 32 clash in Toronto on Friday. Croatia were denied a late equaliser after Josko Gvardiol had scored deep into stoppage time, only for VAR to intervene and disallow the goal for offside during the buildup. The 2018 runners-up had as many as three goals disallowed due to offside, but Gvardiol’s strike-which was chalked off in the 13th minute of injury time, sparked huge controversy.
Ivan Perisic floated a cross into the Portugal box, and Igor Matanovic rose highest to flick the ball towards the back post for Mario Pasalic, whose loose touch fell kindly for Gvardiol to tap home from close range.
However, after VAR intervened, Pasalic was deemed to have been in an offside position, with Snicko showing that Matanovic had got a slight touch on the ball. The Croatian players were left complaining after the goal was overturned in Toronto.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Modric insisted, contrary to what the officials said, that Matanovic hadn’t touched the ball, calling the decision very harsh.
“He says Matanovic touched the ball, but we watched the footage, there’s no evidence that he touched the ball. If he doesn’t touch the ball, it’s not offside,” Modric was quoted as saying by Sportske Novosti.
Modric also admitted that while they didn’t play well in the first half, they deserved more out of the game for their performance in the second 45 minutes, adding that he was proud of the team effort.
“We can look at the game in two parts, in the first half we were not at our best level, we were quite withdrawn, but in the second half we played a phenomenal game. That’s one of our better games. We could have easily finished it earlier, but we didn’t manage it. We missed, and then some things happened that are unbelievable to me,” he added.
“What is, is there. It’s hard to say what is smart after the game, I don’t want to say something wrong. We can be proud of how we played the second half; we deserved more, but simply, football is like that. “
Featured Video Of The Day
IPL 2026 News | Shami’s Sensation Leads Lucknow to First Win of Season
Topics mentioned in this article
