Reports that Tottenham Hotspurs rejected Real Madrid’s offer of two players in exchange for Croatian midfielder Luka Modric show how the London club rate their star asset.For the second season running Modric has indicated his desire to leave Spurs for a new challange, yet the club is holding out for £40m, which in my view is an exorbitant fee for a player who can not be rated among the best five midfielders in the world.If Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy thinks the player is worth that much, how much would he sell Iniesta, Fabregas, Xavi, Sneider, Alonso, Ozil, Gerrad (in his prime) or even Cabaye for, if they were Spurs’ players?Apart from Real Madrid, Modric has been linked to both Chelsea and Manchester United but none of these clubs has come up with a concrete bid near what Levi is quoting.It was reported in various media outlets in both England and Spain that Spurs had rejected an offer from Madrid that would have seen Nuri Sahin and Ricardo Carvalho move to White Hart Lane in exchange for the 26-year-old.After rejecting strong advances from Chelsea a year ago, it did not come as a surprise to see Real Madrid rebuffed for not coming up with the cash, and instead proposing player(s) swap deal.Jose Mourinho has been a long-term admirer of the Croatian schemer and had a £31m offer rejected a month ago as he looks to strengthen his squad ahead of the Liga title defence next season.The player refused to travel on Spurs’ pre-season tour of USA and was fined for his action, but has since apologised and resumed training. Like last season, Modric is trying to force a move away from the bright lights of London for a bigger club with higher ambitions.Levi and Spurs are unyielding that the player-maker is worth the £40m price tag and are refusing to budge, but he is really worth that much after just one season in the Champions League since his move from Dynamo Zagreb in 2008?Without any doubt, Modric is a good and creative player with experience of playing in one of the best leagues in Europe, and yes Madrid definitely need a player like him who can play different positions, but that said, I think Forty million Pounds is way too much for him.I don’t know why but I believe players in the English Premier League command high transfer fees unnecessarily. In normal circumstances, Modric is not worth more than £25m; above that, very few clubs would even tough him with a barge pole; and at £40m, not even Real Madrid would pay that let alone Chelsea or Man United.
