"Not good enough to play anymore", "Why hasn't he retired" - Fans unhappy with Real Madrid star's showing in 2-1 loss to Athletic Club

Real Madrid fans have expressed their dissatisfaction online at Luka Modric’s performance after their 2-1 loss to Athletic Bilbao in LaLiga on Wednesday (December 4). The midfield maestro was a substitute in the game but didn't play as per his world-class standards and make a difference in the 19 minutes he spent on the pitch.

Real Madrid traveled to the San Mamés Stadium for their 15th LaLiga match of the 2024-25 season, hoping to cut down the gap between them and league leaders Barcelona, who have played one game more.

While Los Blancos dominated the majority of the match, it was Athletic Bilbao who fashioned the first chance of the night. However, an end-to-end affair between the two sides went goalless in the first 45 minutes.

Ernesto Valverde’s men started the second half just like the first and finally found some joy in the 53rd minute. Álex Berenguer gave his side the lead as he pounced on a rebound from Nico Williams’ cross that Thibaut Courtois parried in his direction.

To add insult to injury, superstar Kylian Mbappe missed another penalty this season in the 68th minute. Nevertheless, Jude Bellingham put Real Madrid back on level terms in the 78th minute, punishing Julen Agirrezabala’s failure to hold onto Kylian Mbappe’s effort from a distance.

But it only took a couple of minutes for Real Madrid to implode after the equalizer as Federico Valverde’s error handed substitute Gorka Guruzeta the winner. The hosts held on to their lead for the remaining minutes to secure a home victory against Carlo Ancelotti’s men.

Veteran midfielder Modric played for only 19 minutes as he came on for Aurelien Tchouaméni in the 71st minute. The 39-year-old Croatian had 25 touches, one accurate cross out of three attempted, lost possession four times, and had a rating of 6.8 (as per Sofascore). He recorded a passing accuracy of 89% (16/18).

Here is how fans reacted to his performance. One fan wrote:

''If Modric loves this club, he will retire. He is not good enough to play anymore and is robbing Guler of minutes because of Ancelotti's dementia.''

Another tweeted:

''Why hasn’t modric retired?"

''Luka Modric I love you so much and grateful for what you’ve done for us but it’s time you put the fries in the bag and retire," @AlonsoOndem wrote.

''Modric is washed Shem,'' @CeeAreJay_20 chimed in.

''Modric just hang the boots g,'' @P3pera opined.

''Luka Modric leave football before football becomes angry with you," @pabyjones commented.

"For me, it was a draw" - Carlo Ancelotti on Real Madrid's 2-1 loss to Athletic Bilbao

After falling to a 2-1 defeat against Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti said his side deserved to leave Estadio San Mames with a point. A win for Los Blancos would have reduced the gap between them and Barcelona to one point in LaLiga.

Prior to the clash, Real Madrid had experienced mixed results in the last six matches across competitions (three wins and three losses). After the match on Wednesday, Ancelotti said (via Managing Madrid):

“The match was even. Athletic are a very dangerous team, we competed and fought. I think the match was a draw. For what both teams did, for me, it was a draw, but nothing to say about the fact that they won. I think we did well defensively in the first half, we could have done better with the ball."

''In the second half, we were better in attack, we had chances. And nothing. We are still in the fight. We could have got a lesser result, but we are there and we have to think about to think about Saturday’s match in Girona. Vinicius has usually taken a lot of penalties and all of them well. There are three penalty takers: Mbappé, Bellingham and Vinicius," he added.

Real Madrid will next be in action against Girona in LaLiga on Saturday (December 7).