Luka Modric Returns to Enliven Gareth Bale and Real Madrid Ahead of Clasico

The return of Luka Modric helped Real Madrid to a 2-0 victory at home against Levante on Sunday, with Gareth Bale scoring twice to end his barren run in front of goal.

Modric had received his first minutes after nearly four months on the sidelines with a thigh injury in the midweek defeat to Schalke and was afforded the chance to get a start under his belt ahead of next weekend’s Clasico against Barcelona.

He had admitted in an interview with Croatian newspaper Sportske Novosti (h/t Inside Spanish Football's Tom Conn) that he was surprised with the strength of the positive reaction he received from the Bernabeu crowd against Schalke.

And he had also wanted to make it clear that he was “no saviour”—that his return to the side would not suddenly solve all of Madrid’s problems.

But on Sunday, the 29-year-old certainly showed what the team has been missing in his absence. He used the ball swiftly and efficiently to progress his side forward and provided intelligent movement and some incisive passes in the final third.

The opening goal perfectly illustrated his talents. He drifted into a good position on the edge of the area to play a neat one-two with Karim Benzema, whose cross was volleyed toward the goal by Cristiano Ronaldo, cleared off the line and then swept in by Bale.

It was certainly not a position that one of the more prosaic midfielders—Asier Illarramendi, Lucas Silva and Sami Khedira—who have occupied the right-sided central-midfield role in his absence would have taken up.

Then, just as Levante were starting to get a foothold in the match, he produced a moment of quick-thinking that led to the Madrid’s second. His swiftly taken free-kick released Dani Carvajal down the right, and the full-back pulled the ball back for Ronaldo to strike low into the corner via a slight touch from Bale.

There were a couple of missteps, including a first-half booking for a wild sliding foul on David Barral after he was caught in possession inside his own half. But given that it was his first start back, Modric performed impressively well. With a further week of training under his belt, he should be fit and raring to go against Barcelona next Sunday.

Bale was the eventual beneficiary of Modric’s contributions to Madrid’s goals, and he looked even happier than most to have the Croatian schemer back in the starting XI. Since James Rodriguez went down with a foot injury in early February, he has often found himself isolated, with no midfielder to link with in order to create an element of surprise in the final third.

His recent performances have been the subject of much scrutiny in the Madrid press. Club president Florentino Perez had even felt the need to offer public support for the Welshman during an unscheduled press conference on Thursday, per Real Madrid's official website.

And the 25-year-old was afforded a frosty reception by sections of the Bernabeu crowd prior to Sunday’s match.

However, enlivened by the presence of his former Tottenham Hotspur team-mate, he was bright from the opening whistle. He and Benzema was both involved in setting up Ronaldo for an early effort off the post, while he rose well to head one Modric corner on target and another over the bar inside the opening half-hour.

While the defensive side of his game—the aspect that has caused both the Madrid coaching staff and his team-mates the most concern, as per Diego Torres of El Pais (in Spanish)—was rarely tested by Madrid’s relegation-threatened visitors, he was able to end his nine-match scoreless streak in all competitions with two close-range finishes before half-time.

Both Bale and Madrid slowed a little after the break. They were seemingly content to play out the match and secure the three points that saw them maintain their one-point deficit to Barcelona at the top of the table.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side will clearly be tested much more thoroughly by the league leaders in their clash at the Camp Nou next Sunday. Their chances of getting a positive result have, however, been greatly boosted by the return of their pint-sized Croatian playmaker.

With Modric controlling operations from the centre of the pitch and Bale hopefully back on song, Madrid will hope to upset the form book and ensure that the Primera Division title race goes down to the wire.

Follow @chewingthecoca