Gazzetta – Napoli, how Modric won the long-distance duel with De Bruyne | OneFootball

Gazzetta – Napoli, here's how Modric won the long-distance challenge against De Bruyne

The two old wizards met in the middle of the field, as they used to. Luka and Kevin, Modric and De Bruyne, 40 and 34 years old. Jerseys with unprecedented colors, new boys around and they with their usual worn bodies, feet like old wands. The forty-year-old wizard won, clearly. Luka Modric played a great game, but he always does that. Above all, he won the physical duel with De Bruyne, because KDB often seemed slow, downbeat and, when he left, seemed annoyed. Conte in the press conference sent him a very harsh message: "I hope he was annoyed by the result. If he was annoyed by other things, he got the wrong person." Boom.

Not Modric, he stayed on the field until the 97’. And he deserves a double zoom on two situations of the recovery, in the 7 minutes after the 90’. At 91’, Luka deflected Neres' shot onto the post that could have sent everyone to the shower at 2-2. In those situations sometimes the instinct says to remove the head, Modric instead looked for the ball… and luck did the rest. Then, when time was running out, he was the one to put out the last ball, on the last cross. The stamp on the match.

Modric and De Bruyne played different games, in different roles. De Bruyne was fantastic from a standstill, like in the good old days. A couple of corners kicked very well, a diagonal to put Di Lorenzo in front of the goal, the second penalty of the championship kicked very well. In this, he can be a champion even in five years. On the field, however, he seemed in difficulty, sometimes slow, never really dangerous for a Milan that closed very well. He played on the left-center, sometimes he lowered to play the ball, he never changed rhythm. Social media overnight bounced back images of a duel lost in speed right with Modric.

Luka, on the other hand, seems to be doing great in his new life. He changed roles – for Allegri he is a play in front of the defense – but he was found everywhere. He showed the usual protractor for launches and openings but added grit and brilliance in the short term. He was not a sedentary play, he was found everywhere and not by chance he is second in Serie A for interceptions. “Luka is such an intelligent player... – Allegri commented -. In the Italian championship he is a player who in front of the defense gives you more quality and manages better. He is too intelligent even in the closures. The interception balls, compared to the contrast balls, open the counterattack and he is very good at this. Even Ambrosini was good when I put him in front of the defense. A little less quality but he was good". And a smile. Ah, if there is any doubt, Milan-Napoli proves: no, Luka Modric did not come to Milan walking for a last catwalk. He came to play in the Champions with Milan... and if the draw brings him back to Bernabeu, so much the better.

Carlo Gioia

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.