Croatia won their World Cup qualifier 4-0, with Modric again impressive on the eve of his 40th birthday.
"He proved once again that the older he gets, the better he gets," Dalic remarked afterwards.
"His style of play is fantastic, rare in the world.
"He leads the national team with so much ambition, he doesn't want to give up, he wants us to go to America, that's our goal, and also an opportunity for something good to happen for us there."
Last night's win also was a landmark for Dalic: "My Croatia's 100th game? I didn't expect to lead the national team for 100 games; it's been a while. Listen, some of them bore me, but it doesn't matter, you'll have to put up with me for a while longer."
