Russia 2018 World Cup Notebook - Day 32

Superstar Modric a darling of Croatia fans

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Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric who has been captaining Croatia here at the World Cup is loved by fans.

The midfielder is also a contenders for the player of the tournament. Modric, who joined, Real Madrid for Sh3 billion ($30 million) in 2012 from English Premier League team Tottenham Hotspur, has played a key role in Croatia’s good run to the final.

But the Madrid midfielder's humble demeanour and good personality has made him a darling of the fans.

In Croatia’s semi-final match against England played at Luzhniki Stadium on July 11 which Croatia won 2-1 in extra time, Modric got a standing ovation from the fans upon being substituted. At the end of extra time, fans displayed banners emblazoned with Modric’s name, and the Croatia captain stood at the centre of the pitch to acknowledge the fans.

Mother of all parties awaits Croatian team

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Croatia has had a fairy tale run in the Fifa World Cup which ended yesterday in Russia. Croatia finished third in the 1998 World Cup held in France.

After losing to 1998 World Cup hosts France in the semi-finals, Croatia beat the Netherlands in third-place play-off match to finish third.

This year, Croatia improved on that performance, reaching Sunday’s final where the team was guaranteed at least Sh2.8 billion in prize money if they finished second.

On Saturday, a team made up of officials from the city of Zagreb were finalizing plans for a grand reception for members of the team when they return home today regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s final, according to local website Croatianews.com. Croatia president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović has been the number one fan of the team.

England’s 1966 hero writes to Southgate

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Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst, the hero of England’s 1966 World Cup success, has written to the team’s coach Gareth Southgate in the wake of the Three Lions’ defeat to Belgium in Saturday’s third-place play-off match at Saint Pettersburg.

Hurst, 76, remains the only man to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final. He scored three goals as England went on to beat West Germany 4–2 at the old Wembley Stadium in 1966 to win the Fifa World Cup for the only time.

In the letter published by Daily Mail, Hurst stresses the importance of team work and support for the team from the federation.

In the letter, Hurst also thanks coach Southgate for making English fans fall in love with football again at the 2018 Fifa World Cup where the three Lions finished fourth after losing 2-0 to Belgium on Saturday evening.

1,500 samples for doping all return negative

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World governing body Fifa has announced that there were no negative results from doping tests it carried on players at the Fifa World Cup.

On Thursday, Fifa announced that it collected 1,500 samples from the players for the purpose of doping tests, 118 of them collected on match days. In a statement, Fifa announced that it has carried out the biggest number of tests in its tournaments.

Soon after the conclusion of the group stage matches at the tournament, some media reports had raised suspicion on the levels of performance and athleticism displayed by some players in matches.

Fifa established a preliminary testing pool of more than 1,500 players who were potential participants at the Fifa World Cup in Russia. There was a significant increase in the number of tests.