2 Croatians on The Guardian’s Best 100 Footballers in 2013 List

Leading British national daily newspaper The Guardian has named two Croatians in its annual end of year choice of the world’s top 100 footballers for 2013…

It is no surprise that Bayern Munich’s Mario Mandžukić and Real Madrid’s Luka Modrić made the list which was selected by a panel of 15 expert judges.

“It took a while for Modric to settle in at the Bernabéu, but now he is dictating games from the back of midfield. When he was at Dinamo Zagreb, the worry was whether a player so slight could handle playing as a central creator in a major European league; remarkably he has not merely done so but now plays 20 yards deeper than he did then, proof that technical ability and intelligence are just as valuable as muscle in the engine room,” wrote The Guardian about Modrić, who was selected in 61st place, 13 places behind his tattooed Croatia team-mate.

“Mario Mandzukic was signed only because Edin Dzeko’s agents wanted too much money, Uli Hoeness revealed last year. The Bayern president had noted the 27-year-old’s tireless work as a sole striker for Croatia at Euro 2012 and Bayern, too, have benefited immensely from him leading the line. Mandzukic is not only one of the hardest-working forwards in European football, he is also particularly strong in the air and an excellent poacher.” (pic: screenshot)