After last night’s epic Champions League final, a good majority of Tottenham fans have been gushing about Gareth Bale’s performance. As Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1, Bale supplied two beautiful goals to seal Los Blancos’ third consecutive European cup win.

While Bale walked away with the lions’ share of praises and appreciation, Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard believes there was another worthy candidate in the Real team – who is incidentally a former Spurs player as well.

One of the key reasons behind Real’s sensational victory was the domination exerted by the midfield. Even before the match began, it was clear that Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner and Jordan Henderson were relatively weaker than Casemiro, Toni Kroos and, of course, Luka Modric.

Modric is a former Tottenham player but over the years, he has established his reputation as a modern-day Real legend with his impeccable displays in the middle of the park. He put in a fantastic performance to completely shut out his Liverpool counterparts in the big CL final.

Speaking to BT Sport, Gerrard showered praises on Modric and appreciated his fine form. As quoted by Football London, the new Rangers’ manager said:

“Just forget all that for one minute about this Real Madrid team, and let’s talk about Luka Modric’s performance, is he the best midfielder in the world right now?

“That performance today was stunning. He receives the ball in tight areas and gets pressed by three or four people, but he is so calm, collected and cool under pressure.

“It was a joy to watch him today, it was a special performance from him.”

Watching Modric play is a delightful endeavour for football aficionados in general and the fact that he is a former Spurs player makes it all the more special. While Bale’s influence is undeniable, Gerrard is right about Modric’s important contributions that are truly priceless.

Well, it was good to see Modric and Bale lift the trophy with Real but next season, Tottenham must make it a point to get there.