At his best Luka Modric struts around the pitch like a conductor being his team’s main source of creation. At his worst the Croatian looks like a little schoolboy lost on his class’s museum trip waiting nervously to meet up with his party again.
Modric has been waiting the last 12 months to leave White Hart Lane. He was denied a move across London to Chelsea last summer when Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy claimed that he wouldn’t sell his star midfielder at any price, turning down bids of £35 million and £40 million from the team then managed by his current manager Andre Villas-Boas.
Modric to his credit got over the disappointment of not leaving by getting his head down to have an impressive start to the season. A fantastic goal against Liverpool early on set the tone but as Spurs cracked in the second-half of the season under the pressure of Arsenal’s form in the run-in, the Croatian’s form dipped.
With Chelsea’s Champions League win cruelly denying Spurs a place in this season’s competition, it only reaffirmed Modric’s desire to leave the Lane. With his mind set on exiting, he tried to force a move last month by initially refusing to go on tour to the United States in pre-season, copping a hefty-fine in the process – not that he’s short of money!
However now Christmas, New Year’s Eve and his birthday has come all in once for Modric as Real Madrid have announced that they have agreed a fee with Spurs for his services. The move represents a chance for Modric to prove that he can be one of the best midfielders in the world at the Bernabeu.
In the past critics of Modric have been that he’s been a big fish in a pond at Spurs and that’s why he has stood out. At Real, he will be a fish in a big pond and in a highly-competitive squad under Jose Mourinho who demands the absolute-best from his players.
Spurs fans have complained about Modric’s attitude over the last year saying that when the chips are down he is not a player you want in your squad and often goes wanting in the big-games. If that’s true he won’t be able to do either at Madrid and will be shipped off out of the Spanish capital to Serie A or one of the Moscow giants within 18 months, it’s now up to him to prove himself and show that he does deserve to be in a side fighting for trophies year upon year.
With a fortnight to go until Transfer Deadline Day, have Spurs left it too late to bring in Modric’s replacement. Should they have sold him earlier to make sure that they wouldn’t have to spend over-the-odds on players? With a shortage of strikers at their disposal will they bring Dimitar Berbatov back to London? Only time will tell.
By Adam Dennehey @ADennehey87
