Goal : Luka Modric was so desperate to secure his “dream” move to Chelsea during the summer that he effectively went on strike, telling Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp that has head was not in the right place to play.
The Croatian missed the club’s Premier League opener against Manchester United and then tried to pull out of the second game of the season, against Manchester City, just hours before kick-off. In various interviews, Modric spoke of his desire to leave Tottenham for Chelsea, engaging in a public spat with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy in an attempt to force a move from White Hart Lane.
Yet Tottenham stood firm, rejected Chelsea bids ranging from £22 million to £40m, forcing Modric to honour his the six-year contract he signed in 2010. On Thursday night, he will line up against the midfield he so wanted to join when Chelsea visit White Hart Lane in a clash that could have a major effect on the battle for a top four finish.
Third-placed Spurs currently sit two points ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League with a game in hand. Modric has played a significant part in his side’s stunning form and has re-established his reputation as the club’s best and most important player.
Not for nothing did Chelsea bid such a huge amount for the 26-year-old and relentlessly pursue his signature despite Levy’s public insistence that Tottenham’s star man would not be sold ‘at any price’. So confident were the Blues of signing Modric – with whom they had privately agreed a contract worth £130,000 a week – that only in the final week of the transfer window did they begin to consider alternatives before signing Raul Meireles from Liverpool.