Rodrygo has revealed Luka Modric delivered a brutal put-down of Mohamed Salah as Real Madrid basked in the glory of their Champions League final victory over Liverpool, with great delight taken in denying the Reds superstar the revenge he craved.
An Egyptian forward at Anfield had spoken in the build-up of wanting to get one over on the Blancos after suffering continental heartbreak and an injury at the hands of Sergio Ramos in 2018.
The Liga champions ensured Salah endured another evening to forget on French soil as Vinicius Jr grabbed the only goal of the game, and Modric was among those afterwards to remind a deflated rival that he will have to “try again next time”.
What did Modric say to Salah after the final?
Brazilian forward Rodrygo told Podpah of the events that unfolded after the final whistle in Paris: “When the game was over, the Real Madrid players made a corridor.
“Liverpool were passing by, Salah was going through a little sad, head down. Modric looked at him and said: ‘Thank you, Salah, next time you try again’. I started laughing.”
Why did Real Madrid want to make fun of Salah?
Ahead of an eagerly-anticipated encounter between Liverpool and Madrid, Salah had said of his desire to face the Blancos: “I think personally, I would prefer Madrid. We lost in the final to them so I want to play against them and hopefully win it.” He went on to add in a social media post that he had a "score to settle".
His words had the opposite impact, with Rodrygo revealing the Premier League Golden Boot winner became a figure of fun for Carlo Ancelotti’s squad on the training ground.
He added: “When a guy provokes, sometimes you just want to win so you can make fun of them.
“In training we used to say 'come Salah, come Salah'… in our head it was already 'we have to win to then make fun of Salah'.”
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