'We will kill them' - Luka Modric recalls bench chat with Dani Carvajal during Real Madrid v PSG in 2022
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Updated 20/02/2023 at 18:00 GMT
Real Madrid secured improbable wins against PSG, Chelsea and Manchester City on their way to a 14th European Cup success last season. And ahead of their first knockout tie of the 2022-23 tournament – a last-16 encounter with Liverpool – Luka Modric spoke to Rio Ferdinand on the Between The Lines show. You can watch the full episode on BT Sport ahead of Liverpool v Real Madrid on Tuesday.
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Luka Modric has revealed to Rio Ferdinand that he told Dani Carvajal that Real Madrid would "kill" PSG in the return leg of their Champions League last-16 clash at the Bernabeu in 2022.
PSG won the first leg 1-0 at the Parc des Princes and took the lead in the second leg, but a remarkable Karim Benzema hat-trick completed an astonishing comeback for Carlo Ancelotti’s men.
Real would hit late goals in the rounds that followed against Chelsea and Manchester City before beating Liverpool in the final to lift a 14th European Cup.
And ahead of Real’s last-16 showdown with Liverpool, Modric spoke with Ferdinand on BT Sport’s Between The Lines, about that PSG match and Real’s run in the competition.
“Everyone was favourite against us it seemed," said Modric. "I think it's difficult to describe what happened.”
Ferdinand then brought up footage of the comeback against PSG in Madrid on the touch screen.
“This game for example, in the first leg, I remember we lost 1-0. We played okay but the coach took me off," Modric continued.
"And I was sitting [on the bench] with [Dani] Carvajal. And I told him before the goal, we will kill them at the Bernabeu. I knew that at the Bernabeu, we had to open [up the game]. We had to show our offensive quality.
“And I knew that they would suffer if we performed like we can. And that's what happened, especially in the last 30 minutes of the second half.
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Luka Modric and Karim Benzema celebrate against PSG
Image credit: Getty Images
“Also, the fans played an important role. Our fans are very demanding and sometimes when things don't go your way, they can be, yeah... [smiles]
“But they were unbelievable - the noise at the stadium was different.”
Ferdinand showed the scenes of the players going back into the dressing room and celebrating and Modric said that he and the players heard them being written off by the press and by the fans, and they used that to their advantage.
“That’s why you see these celebrations. It came naturally but also because everyone was writing us off," the 37-year-old added.
“[They were saying] they are dead, [Luka] Modric should retire, [Toni] Kroos cannot play, this and that, you know? It’s emotional.”
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Ferdinand asked if the players hear all the noise and if they wanted to prove a point.
“Of course,” Modric replied. “You want to prove [something], we had something to prove because everyone was being told we are dead, we are finished."
Modric added that the favourite of his five Champions League titles as a Madrid player was La Decima, but added that last season was special.
“The way we won the Champions League [in 2022] is really difficult to explain. Because in all the games we were finished and everyone, like you said, would back PSG, Man City, Chelsea and probably Liverpool,
"That's why it's special - every time [we were] losing against PSG, against Chelsea, against City."
After coming from behind against PSG, Madrid scored late goals against Chelsea and CIty to progress to the final, where they faced Liverpool.
Against Chelsea, Real won the first leg away 3-1, but were on the cusp of a quarter-final exit after goals from Mason Mount, Toni Rudiger and Timo Werner had given Chelsea a 4-3 lead on aggregate. However, Rodrygo sent the tie to extra-time before Benzema secured a semi-final against Manchester City, where further drama would follow.
Pep Guardiola's side were minutes from making the final, holding a aggregate 5-3 advantage as the clock struck 90 minutes. But a quick-fire brace from Rodrygo sent the match to extra-time before a Benzema penalty saw Ancelotti's side through.
“Against Man City, we scored two goals in two or three minutes," said Modric. "We could have scored the third one without even going to extra time. And there was really something special about that year."
Modric also discussed the outrageous trivela pass against Chelsea in the quarter-final, when he perfectly picked out Rodrygo to slam home a volley.
“I just looked at Rodrygo and saw the space between Marcos Alonso and Thiago Silva. It was a great ball and a great finish also. If he doesn’t score no one talks about the pass.”
Modric told Ferdinand that ability “just came naturally, I noticed that I liked to play this pass from a young age and yeah, that's it."
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You can watch the full episode on BT Sport ahead of the game between Liverpool and Real Madrid on Tuesday evening
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