The series of rifles fired on December 9, 1991 in the village of Modrici, north of Dalmatia will always be remembered by Luka Modric. His grandfather, Luka, was arrested along with five Modrici villagers by Serbian soldiers. They then killed him sadistically.

His grandfather's execution was part of the beginning of Balkan war. Modric was only six years old by then. He had lost the person he loved since he was young.

Luka is Modric's grandparent as well as his caretaker. Both his parents, Stipe and Radojka, left Modric to his grandfather for being too busy worked in a knitwear factory.

The execution was just the beginning of the Balkan war. The killing of six Modrici villagers was a Serbian army message so that the villagers leave.

The Modric's family were forced to flee to Hotel Iz, City of Zadar. They had to go through the sad days without electricity and clean water. Mortar explosions and rifle barrages were always heard from a distance, moreover, landmines were everywhere.

"We had been living in hotels for many years and had been working at the same time, but I always loved football, I remembered the shin pads I wore with Ronaldo's face from Brazil, and I really admired him," Modric told The Sun.

NK Zadar Chairman Josip Bajlo recalled Modric's childhood. Modric was a skinny and small boy. But his physical condition did not stop him to continue playing football as a means of entertainment amid war terror.

Modric's coach at Zadar NK, Tomislav Basic, said Modric and his teammates always played in the midst of fear. But they never stop playing football.

"We were always frightened, that was what I remembered best: Thousands of grenades, fired from the surrounding hills, fell on the training grounds those years, and we always raced to reach shelters. Football is our escape from reality," Basic said.

Modric's early career was not that easy. He was denied by his idol club Hajduk Split. This rejection made Modric discouraged.

But slowly he rose to pursue a professional football career and entered Dinamo Zagreb at the age of 15 years old. By the age of 18, Dinamo loaned Modric to Zrinjski in Bosnia Herzegovina then to Inter Zapresic in the suburb of Zagreb. Modric performance was quite stunning. He was also seen as a potential midfielder.

Modric's family supported him to pursue his professional football career. When the war ended, they were willing to settle at narrow hotels so that Modric could stay close to his club.

His career then skyrocketed, Modric then left to the Premier League and signed a contract with Tottenham Hotspur (2008-2012) then moved to Real Madrid (2012-present).

At the 2018 World Cup, Modric led his team to make history for Croatia. They managed to advance to the final after beating the football giant, England, with a score of 2-1. Unfortunately Croatia was defeated by France at final.

Source: Detik