Real Madrid News
Modric offered a chance to retire at and coach Qatari giants – report
Al Sadd first came into the spotlight when Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez signed for them back in 2015. The Spanish maestro played for the Qatari team until 2019 after which he took over the reigns as the manager for the same club.
According to reports from Romain Molina (h/t Madrid Xtra), Real Madrid icon Luka Modric has a similar offer on the table. Al Sadd have offered the Croatian the option to end his career in their colours and then take over as the coach.
They are, however, not the only Middle East establishment interested in Modric’s signature. Al-Ahli of Saudi Arabia are equally keen on the Real Madrid star, although they do not offer the option to become their manager as of now.
Modric is no stranger to receiving lucrative offers. For a player of his calibre and experience, it is only natural that there remains a constant inflow of transfer proposals. In fact, he has rejected multiple offers from Asian clubs in recent months.
At 37 years of age, the veteran has no dearth of drive to compete at the highest level. And it was believed that the Croatian midfielder has promised another season to Real Madrid and will stay through next season.
However, it is inevitable that the midfielder leaves the Santiago Bernabeu at some point. And earlier today, reports suggested that Modric was seriously considering the prospect of a move to Saudi Arabia after receiving a fresh, lucrative two-year contract offer.
It remains to be seen how many more years of magic the veteran has in his legs. Yet, it is likely that his connection with the sport will not end with his retirement as a player.
Modric is one of the exceptionally intelligent players of the generation and has all the qualities required to pitch up a successful managerial career. Needless to say, the opportunity in Qatar may hold more to it than it appears.
However, whether Modric chooses to take up Al Sadd’s proposal, moves to Saudi Arabia, or continues at Real Madrid remains to be seen.
Life at Real Madrid has gotten off to a rather torrid start for Turkish starlet Arda Guler, who has already faced a large number of setbacks since singing for Los Blancos.
Aged just 18, the winger-slash-midfielder has already picked up seven injuries in his senior career, which is cause for serious concern, especially since a couple of them have affected his ligaments – which is always bad news.
Hotly-tipped to be an exciting addition to the Madrid squad going forward, the youngster had to drop out of their pre-season tour early due to a meniscus injury.
This was treated conservatively, but after that did not yield good results, he had to undergo a procedure and seemed set to make the squad against Las Palmas, before another injury setback.
According to Diario AS, the new problem can keep him out for three weeks to a month, which means his Real Madrid debut may have to wait till early November, after the first El Clasico of the season on 28th October.
Guler’s history of fitness problems
In their report, AS also state that the Turkish teenager seems to have a propensity for injuries, accumulating seven of them in his career already.
There is also word going around that his recovery from this meniscus issue was rushed and not handled adequately.
That, combined with a stroke of bad luck means Real Madrid have to be very mindful of how Guler is reintegrated into the squad going forward.
This new injury is reportedly a thigh problem which will also need to be treated with caution.
A special recovery plan
Carlo Ancelotti stated before and after the Las Palmas clash that the plan was for Guler to have some minutes against the Canary Islanders, but he said that genetics, luck and a lack of sharpness have a big part to play in this relapse.
The Italian manager did say that this issue is not as serious, but all signs indicate that there is an urgent need to work on the youngster’s conditioning.
AS thus say that a specific plan has been devised since the summer to enhance Guler’s fitness and his resistance.
This is a programme that is reportedly similar to the one Rodrygo followed when he arrived from Brazil, much thinner than he is today, but without having sacrificed his football qualities.
