Over the last few seasons, Real Madrid have seen a number of veteran players departing the club for the next step of their careers and their replacements come in to take their spots in the squad and lead the team for the future years to come.
This transition has not led to a downturn in results though. Just this season, Los Blancos completed the Champions League and La Liga double.
That is impressive, considering players like Marcelo, Raphael Varane, Casemiro, Karim Benzema and more have departed the club in recent years. We have seen youngsters like Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Eder Militao, Jude Bellingham and others step up and fill the voids left by the departures of such influential players.
However, some players of the old guard have been able to stick around and compete for their place in the team. And they have proven to be key players as well, still performing at a top level.
Toni Kroos shocked the footballing world by announcing his retirement after the EUROs this summer. That means he has already played his last game for Real Madrid, which was his sixth Champions League win. Many now wonder what the future holds for Luka Modric, and there seems to be good news in that regard.
As reported by The Athletic, Modric has agreed a new one-year contract to keep him at Real Madrid until 2025. The 38-year-old has accepted a lower salary as part of his new deal.
Even as Modric is getting older, the Croatian icon is defying the odds and has been playing some of the best football of his legendary career in his last few seasons at Real Madrid. In this campaign, he has taken more of a secondary role but he is still an important impact player to have in the squad.
Initially, the expectation was that Modric would leave after struggling to get into the team early on in the season. But his involvement has grown somewhat as the season has progressed and he seems to be more comfortable in his new role. Also, with Kroos retiring, it has become even more important to keep the Croatian around.