They say the best deliver when it's most needed and Croatia great Luka Modric did just that in Hampden Park on Tuesday night when he put in a stellar second-half performance to inspire his team to a 3-1 win over Scotland and also took them through to the Round of 16 at Euro 2020. En route to victory, he pulled off a remarkable goal.
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The moment of brilliance arrived in the 62nd minute of the game when the teams were locked at 1-1 in an intense battle. With a place in the last 16 on the line, the teams had to find a winning goal and Croatia did when Mateo Kovacic, after receiving the ball from the left flank, threaded it to Modric outside the box. The 35-year-old went for goal from the outside of his right boot and smashed the ball into the net by curling the ball from the inside of his foot. The shot, when seen in slow motion, looks as if Modric gave a spin to the ball which helped it swerve in and crash into the back of the net.
WATCH| MODRIC'S WORLD-CLASS GOAL
{{/usCountry}}WATCH| MODRIC'S WORLD-CLASS GOAL
{{/usCountry}}The goal has become a strong contender for the goal of the tournament and rightfully so. The sheer class and precision of the shot was a sight to admire for everyone around the world.
Eventually, the Croats won the game 3-1. First, Nikola Vlasic opened the scoring in the first half before Scotland's Callum McGregor equalised. Modric, after scoring and giving his team a 2-1 lead, assisted Ivan Perisic's header in the 77th minute to seal a crucial win for his side.
Meanwhile, England beat Czech Republic in the other Group D game to top the points table with three wins in three games. Croatia finished second with four points, ahead of Czech Republic (also with 4 points) on the basis of a better goal difference. Scotland ended their campaign winless and with one point in three games