Ballon d’Or 2018: 4 facts surrounding Luka Modric’s win that you probably didn’t know

Luka Modric has done it. The Croatia captain has won the Ballon d’Or for the first time in his career. It was the first of many things as we shall see further down the slide but before that, let’s have a look at what he had to say about his achievement.

The Croat was humble, as usual, and stated that there were no words to describe the occasion. He also brought up the cases of Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez not winning despite deserving it.

“It is difficult to express my emotion and how I feel in words. It is something unique for me. It was very special tonight.

"Maybe in the past, there are some players who could have won the Ballon d'Or like Xavi or Andres Iniesta but people finally now are looking at someone else.”

Modric then added that his year was phenomenal due to captaining Croatia to the final of the World Cup while also helping Real Madrid lift the Champions League last season.

"To win the Champions League and play in the final of the World Cup as captain was amazing and finish with this is... it is difficult for me to chose from those moments.

“I just want to enjoy it."

Of course, he should enjoy it because, after all, he is…

#4 The only one to break the Ronaldo and Messi duopoly

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had dominated the proceedings for the last 10 years. Starting from 2008, no player could topple the duopoly of the Argentine and the Portuguese.

Some did come close. In 2010, Andres Iniesta made a strong claim while in 2013, Frank Ribery was inches away from it.

But none of them could go all the way until the former Tottenham Hotspur man won the accolade last night to also become the…

#3 First ever former Spurs player to win

Modric was wonderful at Spurs

This is quite astounding, isn’t it? Tottenham Hotspur are among the biggest clubs in England right now but it wasn’t a very long time ago when they were actually the punching bags of the Premiership.

Mauricio Pochettino has carved out a brilliant team under his tutelage. So, we can expect Modric have company in this list in the future as the likes of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min have the potential to clinch the prestigious honour.

However, right now, Modric is the only player in the history of the game to have played for Tottenham and then hold the distinction of being a Ballon d’Or winner.

In fact, the Croat even praised his former boss at the White Hart Lane, Harry Redknapp, for the influence on his career.

"When I dropped back [from an attacking midfield position to central midfield], I was able to read the game better and show my creativity. Harry Redknapp made that change, " Modric said.

#2 Oldest Ballon d’Or winner

The Best FIFA Football Awards - Show

At the age of 33, Luka Modric becomes the oldest player to ever win the award. It could have been a little different had the gala taken place two weeks ago as he only just managed to overtake his nearest rival by 10 days.

There is only one player who was almost precisely as old as Modric when he won the Ballon d’Or: Fabio Cannavaro. The Italian, who is also the last defender to win the award, was 33 years-old like the former Spurs superstar.

Modric was born on the 9th of September, 1985 while Fabio Cannavaro came into this world on September 13, 1973. The Italian was bestowed with the Ballon d’Or on November 27, 2006, at the precise age of 33 years, 2 months and 14 days.

Modric, meanwhile, won it aged exactly 33 years, 2 months, 24 days – making him the oldest ever to hold this distinction.

#1 The first Croat ever

Modric led his team to

It hasn’t been very long since Croatia became an independent country. 27 years might seem like a long time but in the context of the other nations in the world of football, 27 isn’t really that big a number.

After becoming an independent country in 1991, Croatia actually displayed their brilliance in the field of play soon after. In their first ever World Cup appearance, Croatia ended up being the third best team in the tournament.

They bettered it this time by being the runners-up and the man that led them towards it has now been crowned as the best footballer on the planet. Luka Modric now becomes the first ever Croat player to ever win the honour.

And it is a proper marriage as the Real Madrid superstar will finish his career as the greatest player in the history of the country.