Marcel Desailly: Tottenham’s Luka Modric is too lightweight to play for Chelsea

The 25-year-old has been heavily linked with a move away from Spurs, with the Blues reportedly having two bids rejected for the Croatia international.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has maintained throughout the summer that the player is not for sale at any price, but speculation surrounding the future of the former Dinamo Zagreb man continues.

Now Desailly has insisted that it would be wiser to bring someone like Inter midfielder Wesley Sneijder to the club instead of Modric, who he believes is “too lightweight” to play for the Blues.

“They really need to sign a playmaker,” Desailly was quoted as saying by The Mirror. “Modric is a great player, but he’s too small, too lightweight. I’m not sure he’s right for Chelsea and the number of games they play. I feel he’s a bit light.

“For what Chelsea need he’s good, but not great, not the best. Now, Sneijder is a great player. We’re talking about Chelsea, who have to be on the same level as Barcelona, Manchester United and AC Milan, not Tottenham Hotspur.”

Desailly also insists that Andre Villas-Boas’ first few weeks in charge of Chelsea could be vital for his reign at the club.

The 33-year-old became the youngest manager to win a European competition last season when he guided Porto to the Europa League.

But the Frenchman believes that his age could play on the minds of the club’s players, and uses Roy Hodgson’s spell at Liverpool as an example as to how important it is to get off to a good start.

“All the pressure is on the shoulders of the coach,” said Desailly. “It’s all up to him. The next step is to get the consideration of the players.

“If I was in the squad like this, with a young coach like this with not too much experience, who has had one win with Porto, it could be a little problem.

“The Chelsea players are really established players. If I was there, a World Cup winner, I would be expecting the coach to show me during the training sessions, and in his substitutions and tactics, how clear he is in his vision.

“If he makes any mistakes, then you will see that they will not follow him. Subconsciously – not necessarily on purpose – they will be thinking that the guy who is supposed to be managing is not on their level. He has to be clever on how he manages his team.

“This is the challenge for the manager. It’s a big consideration for me, given the young age that he is.

“His first few weeks could be vital. It’s vital in that, if they don’t perform – like Liverpool last year early in the season – the players and their consideration will change. The manager needs the players to follow him, to follow his vision.”

Desailly recently exclusively told Goal.com that he feels former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti was sacked due to Fernando Torres’ poor form.