Relaxing: Luka Modric plays a game of cards on the
beach
Luka Modric has been fined by Tottenham Hotspur
for the second time in three days after refusing to travel on the
club's pre-season tour of America, in his latest attempts to force
through a transfer to Real Madrid.
The club had previously been discussing leaving the player
behind in London as they tried to come to an agreement with Madrid
but, on Saturday, Modric took matters into his own hands and did
not turn up for the team flight to Los Angeles. While it was always
a possibility that he might miss the three-match tour, the club
feel that the way in which the player has gone about it has been
ill-judged.
Modric has been fined for a second time by the club for missing
the flight, following an earlier fine for missing training on
Friday without permission. He stands to lose up to four weeks'
wages – around £160,000 – with the likelihood he will be fined the
maximum two-week fine for both offences.
Modric’s whereabouts were unknown by Spurs on Sunday although it
is understood he may have returned home to Croatia as he
contemplates finally handing in a transfer request.
Much may depend on the outcome of Monday’s meeting with Real so
far refusing to go beyond the £27 million - including add-ons -
that they have already bid for Modric who is also wanted by Paris
St-Germain and Chelsea
although Spurs chairman Daniel Levy will not sell to another
Premier League club.
His absence prompted an angry response from Andre Villas-Boas,
the new Spurs manager, who told the Spanish sports newspaper AS
that this latest move on Modric's part would not go down well with
the club's chairman, Daniel Levy. Villas-Boas said: "I think Modric
is wrong. This will go against him. He has worsened the situation
with what he's doing and now the chairman [Daniel Levy] is very
angry."
The deal to sell Modric to Madrid has been accepted by both
sides as a probability for some time, but the two clubs have not
been able to get close to agreement on a fee for the player, with
Levy chasing a value of around £40m. Spurs' priority is a cash deal
and that is still the most likely outcome, although it is not
impossible that a player might be put in by Madrid. So far they
have offered the Turkish midfielder, Nuri Sahin, whose high wages
are a problem for Spurs.
Villas-Boas admitted selling Modric would be a “big loss” and
has already warned the 26 year-old of Spurs’ determination to
achieve the right price for him and the club is braced for a
transfer saga that could run until the window closes.
Modric’s advisers, however, hope to move things along on Monday
and are trying to persuade Real to raise their bid.
Levy has consistently proved to be not only a stubborn
negotiator but a man who will dig in his heels if needs to be - as
he proved when stating that Modric was not for sale at any price
last year and had to stay despite a series of offers from Chelsea
culminating in a bid of £40 million. In return, Modric refused to
sign a new contract.
As has been the way in recent dealings with Levy and big-name
departures from Tottenham, the chairman holds all the cards having
persuaded Modric to sign a six-year deal in May 2010, which puts
the club firmly in the driving seat. The 26-year-old took Spurs to
the brink last summer in an attempt to leave for Chelsea but
failed, and once again he is unlikely to break the resolve of
Levy.
