LONDON: England midfielder Mason Mount is relishing the possibility of another head-to-head battle with Croatia’s Luka Modric in Sunday’s Euro 2020 clash after taking the spoils in his first encounter with his boyhood idol.
Mount’s influential display played a key role in Chelsea’s Champions League semifinal victory against Modric’s Real Madrid this season.
The Chelsea star grew up in awe of Modric’s graceful performances for Tottenham, Real and Croatia so had to pinch himself when Modric asked for his shirt after Chelsea’s 2-0 second-leg triumph at Stamford Bridge.
But his admiration for the 35-year-old will be put on hold at Wembley this weekend when England kicks off their Euro campaign.
“He has always been a player that I have looked up to,” Mount said on Friday. “Ever since he has been in the Premier League with Tottenham, I have watched him quite closely.
“Playing against him, it was weird because I had watched him so much, I kind of knew his moves and what he was going to do.
“It helps being a fan of a player and then playing against him because you know what he likes to do.
“The experience of playing against him helps because you want to be in these big games and learn how to handle the pressure and big moments.”
Mount took home Modric’s shirt after the first leg in Madrid, with the 2018 Ballon d’Or winner then requesting his jersey in the return meeting.
“I spoke to (Mateo) Kovacic before the first game and asked if I could get his shirt at a later date,” he said.
“I managed to do that and he asked for mine in the second game because I didn’t actually give him mine in the first.
“Kovacic said he likes to swap with players so he came up and said he wanted mine, just said ‘good luck in the upcoming games’.”
On current form, Mount is a strong contender for a place in Gareth Southgate’s starting line-up to face Croatia in a rematch of the 2018 World Cup semifinal won by Modric’s men.
Having provided the pinpoint pass that led to Kai Havertz’s winner in Chelsea’s Champions League final victory against Manchester City, Mount’s confidence is high.
The 22-year-old would love to help England achieve their own historic triumph in the Covid-delayed European Championship.
“Obviously knowing the history, we’ve never won a Euros before, so, for us, we’re a team that’s very hungry to want to do that,” Mount said.
“We want to create history that no-one has ever done before and I feel like with this group, with this young group, we can definitely do that and we know what we can do.”
England’s Mount eager to resume duel with idol Modric at Euro 2020
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England’s Mount eager to resume duel with idol Modric at Euro 2020
- Mount's influential display played a key role in Chelsea's Champions League semi-final victory against Modric's Real Madrid
- The Chelsea star grew up in awe of Modric's graceful performances for Tottenham, Real and Croatia
Salama smashes course record with sensational 60 at Madinaty
- Spaniard cards 10-under-par round with 9 birdies and a chip-in eagle to lead by four in Egypt
CAIRO: Spain’s Juan Salama fired a sensational 10-under-par course record of 60 to take a four-shot lead after the opening round of the Egypt Golf Series.
Salama’s stunning round at Madinaty Golf Club bettered the previous record of 63 and included nine birdies and a chip-in eagle on the par-five ninth — his final hole of the day after the field started on the 10th.
The Spaniard, who finished runner-up to Jack Davidson in last week’s play-off at Address Marassi, dropped his only shot of the day on the eighth hole, meaning a par there would have given him the magical 59.
“It was definitely an early start today — I was up at 3:45 a.m. stretching, breakfast at 4:30, and we arrived at the course around 5:30, so I was warming up in the dark, which was pretty crazy,” said Salama.
“But it actually went really well. I love being first out because the greens are perfect with no footprints and the ball rolls beautifully. The conditions here at Madinaty Golf Club have been fantastic all week.
“I made nine birdies with just one dropped shot, and on the last hole I really fancied the chip-in for eagle. My personal best round is nine under, so I went for it and it paid off. I feel like my game has been in a really good place the last couple of weeks. I’ve been working hard, my family has been a huge support, and my wife keeps me very disciplined, so it’s nice to see that work paying off.”
Last week’s winner Jack Davidson is the closest pursuer after a six-under 64 that included seven birdies and just one dropped shot at the par-five 13th — his fourth hole of the day.
“It was a similar situation to last week, chasing Juan Salama again, but I’m really happy with six under,” said Davidson. “The wind made it tough at times, but I managed to hole a few nice putts and keep the momentum going after last week’s play-off win.
“The up-and-down on eight was a big moment. It’s one of the hardest holes on the course, so saving par there and going on to make birdie at the last was huge. With an early tee time tomorrow, hopefully we get slightly better conditions and fresher greens.”
Four players currently share third place at five under par: Argentina’s Gaston Bertinotti, Wales’ Owen Edwards, Germany’s Tim Tillmanns and Italy’s Ludovico Addabbo, who sits second in the MENA Golf Tour Rankings.
“It was a great round, to be honest. I played really solid,” said Bertinotti. “The course was playing pretty tough — really firm and fast, especially on the downhill shots — and the wind picked up after the fourth hole, which made things even more challenging.
“The wind makes the course a lot more challenging. There are holes where you can be hitting three clubs less than normal from the rough because the ball just doesn’t stop downwind. Both nines are tough in different ways. On the front you hit more drivers, and on the back there are a lot of demanding iron shots, especially with the par threes and the water in play.”
Rankings leader Chris Wood is absent this week as he competes in the Qatar Masters on the DP World Tour, and with Addabbo well placed heading into round two, there is an opportunity to close the gap at the top of the standings.
The Egyptian contingent found the windy conditions challenging but took plenty of positives from the experience of competing against the international field.
“Conditions are pretty tough with the wind,” said Ahmed Morgan, who carded an 81. “When I played this course on the Asian Tour without wind it was much easier, but with these conditions there are some really demanding holes. The greens are very fast, so it’s difficult to hold them, which makes knocking it close to the pin the key this week.”
Amateur Abdelrahman El-Defrawy echoed those sentiments after his opening 78.
“It was pretty tough out there with the wind, but the course itself is in great condition,” he said.
“The wind was probably the biggest challenge, especially with judging yardages between clubs. But that’s all part of the experience — playing under this kind of pressure is something I’ll take a lot from going forward.”
