Euro 2016: Luka Modric stunner, young Polish stars highlight Day 3

The third day of Euro 2016 brought three shutout wins for favorites, but it was by no means uneventful, neither on the field nor off it.

The best match was the nightcap between Germany and Ukraine. The Ukrainians absorbed pressure, grew into the game and had a handful of chances late in the first half to equalize Shkodran Mustafi's early header. But more on that later. The second half was more comfortable for the Germans, and Bastian Shweinsteiger's stoppage-time goal on the counter sealed a 2-0 victory.

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Elsewhere, Poland found a second-half breakthrough against Northern Ireland and Croatia saw off Turkey for 1-0 wins. And it's with the Croats that we'll commence our Sunday recap.

GOAL OF THE DAY

Here it is – a preposterous volley from Luke Modric featuring a stunned Turkish commentator.

It may not be the most aesthetically pleasing goal of the tournament – Dimitri Payet likely retains that title, in part because of the circumstance – but Modric's strike is absolutely a more difficult skill than Payet's. The height, and therefore pace, of the falling ball, along with the pressure from onrushing defenders, are what make it so impressive.

COSTLY HAIR ADJUSTMENT OF THE DAY

It's tough to blame any Turkish player on such a brilliant individual goal, but apparently Turkish TV found a culprit.

TACTICAL TALK

Despite the one-goal margin in Paris at Parc des Princes, Croatia maintained a remarkable amount of control over the game. Turkey, for the most part, entered the match content to keep its shape. Modric's goal, however, compelled the Turks to become gradually more proactive. The issue was that they did so on an individual basis rather than a team-wide basis.

Turkey wasn't necessarily disorganized, but when it decided to press, it didn't do so as a cohesive unit. Therefore, rather than compressing the field, the Turks were pressing one of the best midfields in Europe with a 3-v-3 or 4-v-4 man-based scheme, and a simple feint or body adjustment often allowed Modric, Ivan Rakitic or others to play out of mild trouble.

Croatia, thus, was able to dictate the pace – often pedestrian – and create chances when Turkey's concentration waned. The eventual winners very easily could've scored more than one.

OBNOXIOUSLY DEFENSIVE FORMATION OF THE DAY

Northern Ireland basically decided that attacking from open play was irrelevant. Manager Michael O'Neil picked a lineup with one striker, two midfielders, and seven defenders, with two of the seven, Chris Baird and Paddy McNair, playing as defensive midfielders in a narrow 5-4-1. It was blatant, it was unattractive, and it was useless going forward …

But for a half, it was effective, as Poland really only manufactured one big chance in the first half. On 51 minutes, though, the game changed …

THE MAJOR TOURNAMENT PRICE INFLATION EFFECT

As Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski wrote in "Soccernomics," "The worst time to buy a player is in the summer when he's just done well at a big tournament." The recency and availability of his performances can obscure the fact that those performances represent a small sample size and can drive the player's value up by millions of dollars.

Every day in our Euro roundups, we'll highlight one or more of those players. It doesn't mean that the player is overrated, or that he shouldn't be pursued by big clubs. It just means that his eye-catching play at the Euros might force those clubs to pay above market value for his services.

Smooth on the ball and active, Ajax striker Arkadiusz Milik was Poland's biggest threat of the first half. He created one big chance for himself with a delayed run into the box and a couple of clean touches, but he couldn't quite get his off-balance shot on target.

In the second half, he put an end to the stalemate.

Milik, 22, scored six goals and notched seven assists in qualifying, some of the best numbers in Europe. He's been linked with moves to Leicester City and Liverpool, among others. The rumored price was £15 million. That's bound to rise.

Another player for whom big clubs could soon be lining up is Bartosz Kapustka, a 19-year-old attacking midfielder/winger who showed final-third skill as well as a willingness and ability to retrieve possession. He nearly scored a brilliant goal early on.

Kapustka currently plays for Cracovia in Poland, but is bound to take a step up as early as this summer. Southampton has been mentioned as a potential suitor.

SAVE OF THE DAY

It comes courtesy not of a goalkeeper, but rather of a defender.

Ukraine came excruciatingly close on three first-half occasions. One produced a fantastic reaction save from Manuel Neuer from a header. The third of the three saw the ball find the back of the net, but the goal was correctly ruled out for offside. The second and most memorable chance was acrobatically kept out by Jerome Boateng.

Boateng has developed into one of the best center backs in the world, and he showed why with his emergency clearance.

MORE FAN VIOLENCE

Clashes among supporters has unfortunately been one common thread through the first three days of the tournament.

After ugly scenes on Friday and Saturday, UEFA delivered a no-nonsense warning to England and Russia, notifying both federations that further in-stadium fan incidents could result in the disqualification of either national team from the tourney.

Most of the violence though has been occurring in French streets, where there were more issues Sunday, some of them reportedly instigated by locals.

Germany and Ukraine fans went at it during the day as well.

Among various security provisions, authorities have called for a ban on alcohol near host stadiums. It's clear that both French police and UEFA have a problem on their hands.