Luka Modric (Croatian pronunciation: [luːka moːdritɕ]; born 9 September 1985) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Spanish club Real Madrid and captains the Croatia national team. He plays mainly as a central midfielder, but can also play as an attacking midfielder or as a defensive midfielder. He is widely regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation, and the greatest Croatian footballer of all-time.
Born in Zadar, Modric's childhood coincided with the Croatian War of Independence which displaced his family. In 2002, he was signed by Dinamo Zagreb at age 16, after showing promise with his hometown club NK Zadar's youth team. He continued his development in Zagreb, before spells on loan to Zrinjski Mostar and Inter Zapresic. He made his debut for Dinamo in 2005 and won three consecutive league titles and domestic cups, being named the Prva HNL Player of the Year in 2007. In 2008, he moved to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur for a club-record transfer fee of £16.
This page also has a version in other languages : Лука Модрич (russian)