AC Milan Boss Hails Modric: 'Top Player.. Technical Brilliance And Leadership'
AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri announced Luka Modric will join the team in August, missing the pre-season tour.
AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri disclosed that Luka Modric will join the team in August, which is why he has been left out of the squad that traveled to Singapore for their first pre-season friendly.
Modric joined the Serie A side after contributing to Real Madrid's journey to the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup. Consequently, he was omitted from the squad for their pre-season tour, which includes stops in Hong Kong and Perth after facing Arsenal on July 23 to play against Liverpool and Perth Glory.
'We expect him to join us in August. He's a top player who will add technical brilliance and leadership to the squad," said Allegri in the pre-game press conference.
Who Is Luka Modric?
Since arriving from Tottenham Hotspur in 2012, Modric overcame a challenging start to become a legendary figure at Real Madrid. With nearly 600 appearances and almost 30 major trophies, including a record six UEFA Champions League titles and four La Liga crowns, Modric's impact has been monumental.
Allegri has returned to AC Milan, having previously managed the team for a four-year stint between 2010 and 2014, during which he led them to a Serie A title in 2010/11 and won the Italian Supercup the following year.
Allegri's latest tenure as head coach was with Juventus from 2021 to 2024, marking his second stint with the team. In his first stint, he won five consecutive Serie A titles from 2014/15 to 2018/19 and guided the team to two Champions League finals.
Milan reappointed Allegri after Conceicao's five-month tenure left the team without European football next season.
The Italian coach is optimistic despite this setback, focusing on the positives.
'It's a different situation than it was 15 years ago. It's not only football that has changed, but the world in general. The positive aspect of not playing in the Champions League is that we'll have more time to work and build a team. The negative is that we're not playing on the big stage. But I'm a glass-half-full kind of guy, so we have time and the chance to work on qualifying. I'm confident in my players, because I think this is a talented group with a good mindset," he added.
(With inputs from IANS)
view comments
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
13 minutes ago
- News18
Centre Introduces National Sports Bill In Parliament Amid Uproar Lok Sabha News18
Centre Introduces National Sports Bill In Parliament Amid Uproar | Lok Sabha | BJP | News18 Last Updated:July 23, 2025, 13:21 IST India Videos Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya introduces National Sports Governance Bill in Lok Sabha amid uproar "It's an important bill, a lot of work has gone into it. Crucial aspect will be when it will be taken up for discussion," n18oc_india News18 Mobile App -
News18
an hour ago
- News18
Behind Sarfaraz Khan's Incredible Transformation: No Roti, No Rice And Plenty Of Veggies
Sarfaraz Khan recently shared a picture of himself in a gym showing results of his fitness regime which even drew reaction from Kevin Pietersen. Sarfaraz Khan is sweating it out in the gym and following a strict diet as he aims to achieve supreme fitness to win his place back in the Indian Test team. The middle-order batter recently went viral after sharing a selfie from inside of a gym showing his transformation that even had England legend Kevin Pietersen sit up and take notice. As per reports, the 27-year-old had started working on getting slimmer before flying to UK with an India A squad for a two-match unofficial Test series with England Lions in June-July. He had lost 10 kgs by then and is said to have shed 7 kgs more. Sarfaraz's father Naushad says the family has reworked their diet and have stopped eating rice and roti (chapatti) for over a month now. The diet now includes plenty of veggies, grilled chicken and boiled eggs. 'We have controlled our diet a lot," Naushad told Hindustan Times. 'We have stopped eating roti, rice, etc. We haven't eaten roti or rice at home for 1 to 1.5 months. We eat broccoli, carrot, cucumber, salad, and green vegetable salad. Along with that, we eat grilled fish, grilled chicken, boiled chicken, boiled egg, etc. We are also having green tea and green coffee." Naushad says Sarfaraz has also cut down on sugar and bakery items. 'We eat avocados also. There are sprouts also. But the main thing is that we have stopped eating roti and rice. We have stopped eating sugar. We have stopped eating maida (flour) and bakery items," he said. Naushad reveals he himself has been asked to lose weight for a knee replacement surgery. 'He (Sarfaraz) has almost lost 10 kgs within 1.5 months. He is working on reducing his weight even further. I have reduced 12 kgs myself because I had a knee issue. So, I also benefited from it. The doctor told me that I have to do a knee replacement. So, I told him that I had to delay it. He told me that I have to reduce my weight for that," Naushad said. Sarfaraz's India Career The highly-rated Mumbai batter made his anticipated India debut during a home Test series against England last year and has since scored 371 runs from 11 inning at 37.10. He has a century and three half-centuries to his name. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
an hour ago
- News18
Karthi eyes India comeback after key learnings on Europe tour with India A
Bengaluru, Jul 23 (PTI) Tamil Nadu forward Karthi Selvam is hopeful of earning a recall to the Senior India men's hockey squad after gaining valuable experience on the recent India 'A' tour of Europe, which he believes has boosted his chances of donning national colours again. Karthi, who last represented the senior India side at the Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai in 2023, said the exposure and the specific inputs he received from the coaching staff have given him fresh belief to push for a place in the core group. 'The recent India 'A' tour to Europe has instilled fresh hope for India comeback for me," Karthi stated in a Hockey India release. 'It's going to be two years since I last wore the India colours and there've been a lot of learnings for me in this tour which had a combination of young players and those who have played for India," he added. The India 'A' squad is now back at the SAI centre in Bengaluru, where they will train alongside the senior core group and be in contention for selection for the upcoming Australia tour and the Asia Cup in Rajgir, Bihar next month. Karthi's return to the probables was prompted by a strong showing for Tamil Nadu Dragons in the revamped Hockey India League earlier this year, which impressed the selectors enough to include him in the national camp and the development squad under coach and former India striker Shivendra Singh. The India 'A' side began the tour brightly with back-to-back wins over Ireland (6-1 and 6-0) and a win and a loss against France (3-2 and 0-2). They ran England close in a narrow 2-3 defeat, before going down 1-3 to Belgium and 0-3 and 2-8 to the Netherlands. 'We started the tour very well and the match against England was also quite close. But we couldn't finish the tour on a high with the Netherlands posing stiff competition. Overall, it was a top experience for us," he said. The young forward credited the coaching team for helping him refine his game, particularly on off-the-ball tactics. 'There have been some specific inputs that Craig (Fulton) has given me and also Cosma, our Analytical Coach, has provided valuable inputs for my game particularly on off-the-ball tactics. I've been implementing this in my game and look forward to breaking into the India side again," Karthi said. Karthi knows the challenge ahead remains stiff. 'There is still a lot of hard work to do. There is a fine difference in how the senior team performs and how we have fared as a development team. There are some gaps that we need to work on, and that will be our focus in this camp," he concluded. PTI TAP KHS KHS view comments First Published: July 23, 2025, 13:00 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
