Mateo Kovacic has opened up and detailed his admiration for Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric ahead of Tuesday night's second leg. Chelsea have it all to do at the Santiago Bernabeu as they look to overturn a 3-1 deficit against the odds.
The Blues slumped to defeat at Stamford Bridge last week after Karim Benzema netted a hat-trick in west London, with Kai Havertz offering a reply for the hosts. There's no away goal rule this season in the Champions League, which makes it slightly better for Chelsea, but the task still looks to be a mega one on Tuesday.
Kovacic was used from the bench in last week's defeat to his former club, but did start in Chelsea's 6-0 demolition job of Southampton on Saturday. The Croatian will be hoping Thomas Tuchel will give him the nod on Tuesday at the Bernabeu as he looks to inspire his team to an almighty comeback in Spain.
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The 27-year-old will be determined to come up against his international and former club team-mate, Luka Modric, who he spent four years with at the Bernabeu. Modric, who has established himself as one of European football's top midfielders over the past 10 years or so, was in sublime form at Stamford Bridge last week.
Kovacic has revealed his admiration for his Croatia team-mate and how difficult it is to go head-to-head with him. He said: "It is difficult to stop him because he is an amazing player.
"I admired him because when I was a child he played for my favourite club Dinamo Zagreb. Now, we are friends, I admire him even more."
The Croatian added: "He was always as good as he is now. As far as I know in the last five or six years, he is always on the same level. Why is he so good? He loves football and is a professional every day.
"It was nice to see him and play against him. I always prefer to have him in my team but we show our best tomorrow and try to go through."
The admiration isn't just one-sided, though - it's mutual. Speaking about Kovacic last year, Modric admitted he could be his heir in Croatian football, with the Real Madrid star clearly a big fan of the Chelsea midfielder.
"I think Mateo Kovacic could be my heir. At least he is the player with the most talent," Modric told Marca. "He has played in important clubs such as Inter and Real Madrid. He is at Chelsea now and is doing really well. He is one of the possible successors. Surely he can lead Croatia in the future."
There were plenty of eyebrows raised when Kovacic was named on the bench for the first-leg defeat last week. It's safe to say that plenty of supporters on social media will want the energetic legs of the Croatian to be used from the start in Spain this week.
Tuchel, when speaking about Kovacic last week, said that the Chelsea midfielder still "looks like a wonderkid" sometimes, with the Blues manager heaping praise on the "fantastic" midfielder. When asked about Kovacic's development at Stamford Bridge, Tuchel said: "I think he is still completing it.
"He looks like a wonderkid in training in some exercises. Today he had an outstanding training session. He is a fantastic character, a lovely guy, a humble guy, and so interested in sport.
"He is so happy to train and deliver for the team. It's a true pleasure. Even at Real Madrid, I was aware of his talent and following his career and I felt there was a next step coming and I was sure he had what it takes to make it.
"I am very happy that he is my player and plays a lot this season. He is crucial to us on the pitch and off the pitch. He knows what it takes, what culture is needed at a big club."
