Modric confident Spurs will attract top players to replace Keane
Modric, the €21 million (£16.5m)p midfielder from Dinamo Zagreb, agreed to join Spurs towards the end of last season but, before starting a competitive game, has seen Keane join Liverpool and Berbatov also tipped to move.
Spurs head coach Juande Ramos has plenty of options in midfield and the club are also in negotiations with Blackburn for winger David Bentley, and Modric insists strikers of the right calibre will be found.
“I’m not concerned, this team has a great ambition regardless of Robbie Keane leaving,” said the 22-year-old Croatia international. “Even if Berbatov leaves I’m sure they will find another great player.
“This club really has a great future. We have a lot of positive things here, we have to play as well as we can and try to achieve great results. I agree that the team needs great players, but I’m also certain that, if Berbatov leaves, they will bring in other phenomenal players. This club needs great names and this club will have great names.
“The manager has not told me, but that is what I suppose. I hope that Berbatov stays as he is a great player and he means a lot to the team.”
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy eventually wants to break into the top four of the Barclays Premier League and Modric shares his ambitions.
He added: “As regards the club, the ambition has to be getting in this group of four – Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal – and of course to get in the Champions League.”
Should Berbatov depart, Spurs have been linked with Roman Pavlyuchenko and Diego Milito as out-and-out strikers, while Darren Bent is still at White Hart Lane and desperate to improve on his rookie season when chances were limited.
Croatia coach Slaven Bilic has compared Modric to Kaka but used him more as a defensive midfielder at Euro 2008. Modric is looking to play further up the pitch, while Giovani dos Santos has arrived from Barcelona and can push forward as a support striker.
Modric is slight in build but is confident he can cope with the physical side of the Premier League.
“I feel the most comfortable in the forward position. I feel comfortable in the attacking positions,” he said. “When I was 18, I went on loan in Bosnia and the game is very rough. So it did help me a lot to get used to playing, so there are no more surprises waiting for me.”Dos Santos is also small in stature but is looking forward to first-team action after a frustrating time at Camp Nou.
He played in midfield against Norwich in a friendly this week
“There have not been any promises on playing as a forward,” he said. “It’s no secret that my favourite position is just behind the striker but I’m comfortable anywhere in midfield and further forward. That’s where I feel you get more freedom to express yourself as a player. The first thing is to get in the team — I will play anywhere as long as I’m in the first 11.
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