Luka Modric opens up on how close he came to joining Chelsea
According to The Guardian, Croatian superstar Luka Modric revealed that he could have joined Chelsea had things turned out differently in 2011.
Currently at Real Madrid, the 34-year-old caught the eye of the Blues after excellent work for Tottenham Hotspur.
Modric joined our London rivals in 2008 and went on to establish himself as one of the best midfielders in the league. He became a household name after Spurs took part in the Champions League for the first time in 2010-11.
Having impressed in Europe’s premier competition, Modric felt he was ready to take the next step in his career. He rightly believed that his chances of silverware at Tottenham were close to nil, something that is obvious.
“I wanted to move to a more ambitious club.”
Modric was informed by his agents of Chelsea’s interest. He even went as far as meeting up with Blues owner Roman Abramovich. The Russian revealed to Modric in no uncertain terms of his intention of signing him for Chelsea.
Both Abramovich and Modric were not unaware of the difficulties of pulling off such a deal. Not only were Chelsea and Spurs on bad terms, but Daniel Levy would also prove to be a tough nut to crack.
In fact, the Spurs chairman would later go on to make a public statement that his star midfielder would stay put at White Hart Lane. (h/t The Guardian)
Modric was reprimanded for his public revelation by Levy and also came to be reviled by Spurs fans. He admits that only Harry Redknapp showed a semblance of understanding his view on the matter.
The midfielder’s head was definitely turned. Chelsea kept going back with offers, only for Levy to keep rejecting them. Eventually, he stayed on at Spurs.
Chelsea had the last laugh though. Not only did we win the Champions League that season, but also prevented Spurs from taking part in the competition, courtesy of our sixth-place finish in the league.
Modric eventually moved to Real Madrid in 2012. He has since gone on to establish himself as one of the best players in world football, even winning the 2018 Ballon d’Or.
He is, in fact, the only player to break the duopoly that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had on the award since 2008. A true testament to his ability as a footballer.
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The prospect of imagining Modric turning out for Chelsea is an intriguing one. He would definitely have added to a Chelsea side in need of fresh blood.
Although we can understand Levy’s stance, Modric’s ambition to win trophies should have been taken into consideration. It is difficult to imagine that a kid would grow up with dreams of winning a trophy with Tottenham.
Chelsea, on the other hand, had made it a habit of doing so and could have offered the Croatian the chance to join the fun. Unfortunately, it was not to be.