Luka Modric ‘Ashamed’ After Croatia Suffer Catastrophic 7-0 Defeat to England

Croatia captain Luka Modric said he felt "ashamed" after his side were beaten 7-0 at home by England in the Nations League on Saturday, calling it a "catastrophic night" for the team.

The 41-year-old AC Milan midfielder was winning his 205th cap and said it was the first time in 20 years with Croatia that he had felt this way. 

England ran riot in Rijeka, with Harry Kane scoring twice and Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka also on the scoresheet before Modric was taken off in the 57th minute. By then Croatia were already 5-0 down. Saka added another and Morgan Rogers got the seventh while Modric watched from the bench.

"You can't play football like that... we looked like we had four or five players less," Modric said. "It is difficult to find an explanation for such a performance without duels, fouls, aggressiveness, togetherness. I've been here for 20 years, but for the first time I feel ashamed after a game."

The former Real Madrid man, who helped Croatia finish second and third at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, said losing to a better team is part of the game, and he admitted England are stronger right now. But he was clear about how the night went for his side. "But in any case, losing like this and squandering the reputation we've built over the years is unacceptable... [it was a] catastrophic night [for Croatia]," he said.

It was a sharp drop for Croatia, who had started Slaven Bilic's second spell as manager with a 2-1 win away to the Czech Republic. That put them above England in Group A3. They then lost 4-1 away to world champions Spain, but they were still level on points with Thomas Tuchel's side going into Saturday. A win would have put them in a strong position to beat England to a quarter-final place, with the top two going through.

Instead, Croatia are third in the table and face a fight to stay in the top tier of the Nations League. Things do not get easier, as they host Spain in Split on Tuesday, then travel to England on 12 November and finish at home to the Czech Republic on 15 November.

Modric called on his team-mates to respond. "We need to pull ourselves together, stay together because a new difficult game awaits us," he said. "We have to show our true colours, that there is defiance and pride in us, desire, willingness, togetherness, these things cannot be lost overnight."