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#1 Golden Ball
Even if it was rigged, it could not have gone to anyone else.
Luka Modric, the Midfield Supremo at the heart of Croatia's unlikely but inspiring run to the 2018 World Cup final, stood side by side Kylian Mbappe; the best young player of the tournament, who of course, was privileged to be sharing the same podium with an Immortal.
Neymar, and Mohamed Salah, had been the pre-tournament favourites to end the Messi-Ronaldo divinity, but the unsuspecting influence of Luka Modric wasn't just profound, it was statistical perfection at best -most minutes by a Croatian, more step runs, most passes, most dribbles.... could there have been a more comprehensive display of genius?
Before the World Cup final, there was a trending picture on Twitter, of Luka Modric with a brilliant caption along the lines of "360 minutes of knock-out football, two penalty shoot-outs, broken bones, bruised knees, exhausted souls. Dear FIFA, give Croatia their things".
It summed up Croatia's deep-seated resolve against defeat -yes, it was a team game, but of course, the spirits in the Croatian camp had been lifted and sustained by the unmatched brilliance, and entrancing leadership of Luka Modric.
Thus, even though the Croats didn't get their things, Modric got his, and for the people of Croatia.
