Šime Vrsaljko reflects on the 2018 World Cup and the decision to play despite dealing with a torn ACL:
"I knew that if I went for surgery, I wouldn’t make it to the World Cup. I believed I could push through. For more than a year I played football without a ligament, which led to cartilage damage."
"In the quarter-final against Russia, in extra time, during one sprint my knee, because of that instability and the fact that I had no ligament, simply jammed. I felt something rough happen inside it, it twisted in a way it shouldn’t have because there was severe inflammation of the cartilage and the ACL, which wasn’t holding the knee at all."
"I had to decide, England was coming up in the World Cup semi-final, whether I would do everything to play or not. I decided that it was a moment where there is no giving up. I want to play. If I had struggled and suffered for a year and a half, I would endure England as well. My decision was to play. That’s how I saw it then, and that’s how I see it today. I would do everything exactly the same. After that I played the final against France and then another six months with Inter. By doing that, I brought myself to a state where I simply wasn’t usable anymore, not for playing, but even for walking.
I won’t say that the England match was to blame, it was two years of playing in that condition. After that, things unfolded the way they did. But even if someone had told me that the England match would shorten my career, I would still have done the same. It was my decision, I stood firmly behind it. I was overjoyed that I could take part in a World Cup semi-final. That was my only goal, nothing more." [SN]
🇭🇷 Ivan Perišić on growing up in Croatia:
🗣️ Perišić: "When I was young, I was playing in Croatia and my father's chicken farm was on the brink of a major bankruptcy. To save my family, I transferred alone to France's Sochaux team at the age of 17.
With the first bonus I earned, I paid off all my father's debts and saved the farm.
I feel a deep pride in representing Croatia and hopefully inspiring younger generations who dream of following the same path."
🚨🇪🇸 GOAL | Real Madrid 1-0 Girona | Modric
WHAT A FANTASTIC GOAL FROM MODRIC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
https://t.co/jqB6pYgSAD
In his presser Tocchet mentioned the league had a couple things to look at including a Hyman cross check. Has to be this one below. I’m told Zadorov needed stitches to close up a cut on his face. #canucks