FIFA World Cup 2014: Mexico can go a long way, believes Luka Modric

Modric admitted this Croatia were floored by Mexico's attacking brilliance.

Recife: Jun 24, 2014

Croatia midfielder Luka Modric declared Mexico “can go far” after Miguel Herrera’s side produced a late three-goal salvo to secure a place in the FIFA World Cup 2014 knock-out stage. Modric said his team had under performed but admitted Mexico, who won 3-1 against Croatia on Monday, showed they were the better team at Arena Pernambuco, reports EFE. “We are disappointed, but what can we do?” Modric said. “Mexico played really well. They showed a lot of quality. They were the better team, especially after the first goal. We couldn’t recover from that.

“They are extremely good. They are quick and playing aggressive football. I wish them all the best. I think they can go far”, he added. Croatia had 55 percent of the possession but managed only five shots on target compared to Mexico’s seven. Their only goal came when Ivan Perisic scored three minutes from time, shortly after Mexico had put the game beyond doubt by netting three times in 10 minutes.

“We did have some periods (of superiority) but they weren’t long,” Modric said. “We scored one goal but that was probably when Mexico was relaxed. We have a good team and a bright future in front of us and we have to learn from our mistakes.”

Modric said the team had set a clear goal to make the round of 16, having qualified for their first World Cup since 2006. “We were expecting to go to the next round, of course. You have to have belief in yourself to go far. But we didn’t show that on the pitch. I think we looked good in the first game against Brazil and in the second game (against Cameroon). Today we had some good periods but we weren’t good enough,” he said.

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