Spain vs Croatia : 5 things we learned, UEFA Nations League 2018-19

#5 Helpless Modric and Rakitic

Modric was devastated

A strong performance by Spain in the heart of the midfield saw two of the World Cup's biggest midfield stars left in shambles. Ivan Rakitic who won his 100th cap for Croatia last night started the game well when he almost scored from outside the box, just for the shot to drift inches wide of the right post guarded by De Gea. But apart from that effort, Rakitic was merely chasing the ball off Real Madrid's Isco and Sergio Busquets.

Same was the case for Luka Modric, who was recently crowned Europe's best player for 2017-18. Modric couldn't dictate the pace and tempo of the game like he usually does for Madrid and Croatia, as Croatia didn't see much of the ball in their possession.

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Conclusion

To summarise, it was a night to forget for the World Cup heroes, and Manager Dalic needs to find ideal replacements for the retired players if Croatia are to even think about repeating the World Cup feat. For Spain, it all looks good under former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique, who has been given the charge of revamping the side's fortunes, and he is rightly doing so.