Club: AC Milan Age: 40 Position: Midfielder Caps: 198 Goals: 29
Croatia’s captain and talisman has recovered from a fractured cheekbone on 26 April to stay on course for his 200th cap this summer.
Fifa only recognises three male players with more appearances for their country: Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Bader Al-Mutawa of Kuwait and Argentina’s Lionel Messi.
Modric, the 2018 Ballon d’Or winner, is yet to decide on his future following AC Milan’s failure to qualify for the Champions League.
He was heavily relied on to dictate the team’s tempo in 2025-26 and played his most league minutes (2,788) in a season since 2010-11 with Spurs.
A glorious 13 years at Real Madrid began ignominiously when he was voted ‘worst signing of 2012’ in a poll by Madrid-based sports daily Marca.
But Modric more than proved his worth – claiming 28 trophies, including six Champions Leagues and four La Liga titles at Real.
