The transfer saga starring Luka Modric has quite rightly angered many Tottenham fans. How dare a player that Spurs have given the opportunity to showcase his skills to the world, and just a year ago signed a 6(!!) year contract demand to leave.
Unfortunately in recent years we have seen this situation before, and in the 3 high profile cases (Carrick, Keane, and Berbatov) it has always concluded with the player getting their way and leaving. Thankfully Daniel Levy has until now stood firm on his transfer policy, claiming that Luka is not for sale.
Despite this, you only have to look back to a couple of years ago when he was more than willing to sell our best players. Although we were in the Champions League last season this means nothing to mercenaries like Modric who appear to forget the reason we are no longer in the Champions League is because the PLAYERS were not good enough.
For this reason his main aim next year should be to make it a priority Spurs return into the top four, but I’m not naïve enough to think players have a mindset like that. Modric sentiment is similar to Aloe Blacc’s ‘I need a dollar’, but with the dollar replaced with £120k a week!
Selling Modric is not something Spurs should be considering at all, however Spurs fans have to be realistic and realise there is every chance Levy will end up doing this. Bearing this in mind, I believe there is a Chelsea player Spurs will look to bring in a swap deal that could end up being very useful for the next season.
Didier Drogba
Spurs have been crying out for a new striker since last summer, and this player has been arguably the best premiership striker in recent years. With Torres at Chelsea finding it extremely hard to link up with Drogba last year, and £50 million at risk of being wasted, Chelsea may be willing to offload Drogba in order to revitalise Torres.
Furthermore, Drogba has a fantastic record scoring goals against Arsenal, which is always a characteristic Spurs fans like to see in a player. It appears if Drogba were to ever grace the lilywhite shirt it would be without Modric pulling the stings in the middle of the park for Tottenham, but we do have a player that is capable of stepping up to the plate in Tottenham’s absence.
Niko Kranjcar
This is a player that was very unfairly restricted to mainly substitute appearances in the last campaign, but still managed to score 2 goals that were winners (Modric scored 3 goals in the Premier League last season). More than that Kranjcar has openly stated he is ready to fill Modric’s boots at Spurs, hence this is a footballer that is determined to succeed which can be seen by his desire to leave Spurs (last season) to further his career rather than earn more money in Modric’s case.
What’s more, you only have to look to the 09/10 season when Kranjcar scored many goals from midfield as well as a handful of assists. Obviously Modric is a greater technically gifted player, but I think Kranjcar with an extended run in the side will score at least 10 goals a season in all competitions, and to only a slightly lesser extent compared to Modric, is able to take a game by the scruff of its neck at centre midfield.
It is also important to remember with Drogba in the side there would be far more emphasis placed on Bale and Lennon running down the wings trying to provide service for Drogba’s exceptional aerial ability, hence Kranjcar’s role in the side would be different to Modric’s last season where we didn’t have an effective target man (Crouch’s knockdowns to VDV aside).
This is not to say without Modric in the side we will become a glorified Sam Allardyce side, but the way we play will be able to represent pace and power, along with Kranjcar and VDV representing the technically gifted players in the side. We will be able to combine the advantage of having old-fashioned swashbuckling wingers along with a skilled centre forward, and still have players in the side who can play the Barcelona style of football that has worked in recent years.
I’d sell Modprick and get Drogba in, why keep a player who is not happy, he should be proud to wear the Tottenham Shirt!!!!
Drogba is 33 and temperamental, Kranjcar is useless against a team above 8th in the table. Drogba at best may help us for 1 season but will most likely smash our wage structure and get moody. We’d be better off offering Modric a contract making him easily the best paid player at spurs cos he’s worth it. Ship Kranjcar as soon as we can he’s an overrated luxury player who is suited at Sunderland.
We lose Modric we fall well behind the top 4 and liverpool.
I would sell Modric if he doesn’t want to play for Spurs anymore and buy someone like Vidal, Granero, Badelj or another player who would be more creative, could score a number of goals every season and would have a more effective impact on the team.
Spurs can’t pay the salary Drogba is demanding.
It is time that Spurs stand firm.Do not sell Modric.If need be,let him sit in the stands.To many players get their own way with clubs.Spurs have some great midfield players.I agree 100% with Levy…just hope he keeps his word.
like this piece and would love to take drogba despite his ability to shall we say “make a meal of things” he would be a top addition to our talented squad.Modric would not be missed that much with Kranjcar , bale , lennon , vdv , sandro and hudd all around the park….
i would have agreed with you a year or two ago, but now i say sturridge instead of drogba. drogba doesnt have many seasons left in him in PL, which would render this deal absolutely horrible for spurs, and great for chelsea.
Why write this rubbish and waste everyone’s time?
I am aware that it is fruitless getting angry with the likes of Modric, but it just goes to highlight further the gap that exists between the players, the clubs and the fans. The players no longer even respect the contracts they sign. They kiss the badges of our respective clubs, but care only about making themselves richer and us increasingly poorer. I would love to see the day when fans boycott games en masse to remind the players and clubs that without the fans they are sweet FA!
modric for torres
Kranjkar is not fit to lace Modric’s boots. Sell him to city for adibayour and Adam Johnson. Or real Madrid for diarra and benzene but whatever we do modric needs to be replaced because kranjkar is rubbish
yeah modric for torres save Boas a headache fitting him and drogba!
Why people think nico is rubbish i dont know? He was great in his first season he is much better at shooting than modric although he is not a better player than him but he is a great player.
Wow, I really thought that this kind of nonsense was confined to the Cheatski arseholes who are real dumb and getting dumber by the day with their comments. So you’re now saying that Drogba at 33 years of age is worth £30M, the Russian tosses in £15M on top and we will kiss his arse and thank him for it? You really are f**king stupid to say the least. I couldnt give a rats arse if Modric plays up like a spoilt child, the f**ker has 5 years emaining on his contract and our Chairman is right to dig his heels in and make him honour it, particularly if we want to be considered a top tier club and not an also ran. All this bollocks that Levy will cave in and sell to Cheatski is based on the Berbatov situation where Daniel Levy didnt have any leverage with Berbatov’s contract coming to an end within the year. Situation with Modric is vastly different.
All this scare mongering by has been pros of yesteryear and media scum that Modric will be off to Cheatski and should he stay against his will, will only become a disruptive influence is shit. If he wants to leave so badly, he will be professional and play his nuts off in order to stay in the shop window and retain the interest. If Levy takes the Russians money now, unless it’s £50M cash, no part exchanges, he might as well resign immediately afterwards as no one will take him seriously ever again, our star players will leave one by one because his word will be shit and he will effectively be a lame duck. Krankjar although a good player, taking Modric’s place is laughable, he will always be compared to Modric and will set us back despite what those outside the club might say. If he was of the same calibre as Modric, we would’nt have this situation as we do now. We took a chance on Modric when others would touch him, remember he signed an extended 6 year contract, reportedly for £75K per week less than a year ago after swearing his loyalty to the club and should be made to honour his commitment. Wake up and stop talking shit.
I think that Drogba would be a poor move for Spurs. His wages would be astronomical and he is known for being a stroppy striker which could upset the harmony ‘Arry has created at Spurs. What’s more, Drogba has only one, maybe two years left at the top. Spurs should be going for someone who will lead their line for 5+ years.
Re Kranjcar. I don’t think he’s in Modric’s league. He is a good player, no doubt, but a club aiming to reach the Champions League shouldn’t have him starting. He is a good squad player, but if he was starting every week, I doubt he would have the same impact as Modric.
‘Arry is continuously bumping up Modric’s price tag. I think he’s good but I don’t understand why Chelsea would want him, and what’s more, Chelsea were bidding for him when they didn’t have a manager. So this would be another Abramovich signing (ala Torres, Shevchenko, Zhirkov), sanctioned without the Manager’s say so. I don’t think Modric is worth £30m, but if Henderson, Carroll, Downing are going for £20m+, then he is. £30m for Modric would be a good deal, despite selling him to a rival. There is often little point in keeping an unhappy player. £30m for a club like Spurs is good, but not great. At a bigger club, £30m could bring some of the world’s best talent to the club, but instead, Spurs would have to be shrewd and scout carefully rather than going for an already world class talent.
Finally, I hate players like Modric saying that the club can not hold them against their will. Modric signed a 6 year deal within the last year, and is no doubt one of the club’s highest earners. He is saying that the club are holding against his will and are acting unfairly – He signed the contract and should honour it. Did he not realise it was a six year deal he was signing? Then six months later he wants to leave? Contracts aren’t worth the paper they’re written on.
Some good points made but its not clear what you value Drogba at as its certainly not a strait swap. I would only value Drogba at £5-8m with him being 33 yrs old. If we have to sell Modric cos he is sulking like Berba then we need at least 30-35m just to consider it. I would like to see Christian Erikson of Ajax brought in and rotated with Kranjcar(who deserves more credit than people on this site r giving him) COYS