Real Madrid have decided they will not extend Luka Modric’s contract which is set to expire at the end of the season, reported Spanish news outlet Relevo on Tuesday.
Modric’s playing time has been reduced greatly in the last two years due to the arrivals of young stars like Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni and Jude Bellingham this season. However, despite getting fewer minutes off the bench, the Croatian has been crucial to Madrid’s success.
For so long, there were talks of Modric’s contract with the Whites but it has now been reported that Madrid will not be continuing with the Croatian and will focus on youngsters.
While he is rated highly and everyone inside the club speaks greatly of the Croatian, it is believed that his time with the team has come to an end as he will turn 39 in September this year.
As per Revelo, Modric wanted to continue with Madrid and he was willing to lower his salary considerably but the club did not offer him a contract.
Madrid will honour Modric in the best way possible and will try to give him a big farewell in their last La Liga match against Real Betis on May 25, which will be at Santiago Bernabeu.
However, that may not be Modric’s last match for Los Blancos as they will play Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) final on June 1 at England’s iconic Wembley Stadium.
Ever since joining Madrid, Modric played a total of 531 matches where he scored 39 goals and assisted 86 times. He also won 25 trophies with the Spanish club.
Since Madrid are not willing to renew Modric’s contract, it is likely that he will head to the Saudi Pro League. He was offered a mega-money contract by a league side last summer but the Croatian declined.
He was also approached by top Turkish side Galatasaray recently but the midfielder turned the offer down as he was still evaluating his options for the next season.