Luka Modric will stay says Tottenham No 2 Kevin Bond

Last updated : 19 August 2011 By Daily Mail

Chelsea have made unsuccessful bids of ?22million and ?27m for the player this summer, but rumours persist that the Blues are not willing to concede defeat and will lodge a renewed bid of over ?30m soon.

Spurs have maintained a hard-line stance over Modric's future ever since the saga began, with chairman Daniel Levy keen to stress that the club will not sell any of their stars before the transfer window closes.

Not leaving: Tottenham No 2 Kevin Bond believes Luka Modric will not join Chelsea this summer

Tottenham boss Redknapp admitted on Wednesday that he wants to hold on to Modric, but conceded that the proceeds of any transfer fee would help him develop a better team than he has now.

Despite that claim, Bond is confident that Levy will stick to his word and not offload the 25-year-old Croatian star, who missed last night's 5-0 hammering of Hearts with a groin problem.

'The chairman has made it quite clear that Luka will not be leaving the club and I don't see that changing at all,' Bond told the BBC.

'He has said categorically that he will stay at the club and I think that's what will happen.'

Redknapp stressed on Wednesday that signing top-class players will be key to persuading the likes of Modric, Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart to reject any big-money offers from other clubs to stay at White Hart Lane.

Walking away: Modric wants to leave White Hart Lane but is set to travel to Old Trafford to play Man United on Monday

After a quiet close season, Spurs' attempt to bring in new faces is gathering pace. The north London club are in talks with Manchester City and Real Madrid over possible deals for Emmanuel Adebayor and Lassana Diarra, and both could be Spurs players by the start of next week.

Adebayor's arrival would give Spurs the powerful target man that Redknapp has been looking for since January and would also increase competition among a strikeforce that scored just 18 league goals between them last season.

Jermain Defoe was the biggest flop among the forward ranks at Spurs last term, scoring just four top-flight goals.

The England striker has impressed during pre-season though and looked sharp at Tynecastle last night, where he scored one and set up two goals to effectively end the club's Europa League play-off tie against Hearts after one leg.

Spurs captain Michael Dawson thinks Defoe will be able to handle the competition from Adebayor if he moves to White Hart Lane and has backed the 28-year-old to score regularly this season.

'At Tottenham all the players know that we have to fight for our places, especially when there is talk we are signing some players,' Dawson told the London Evening Standard.

Watch out: Michael Dawson has warned Tottenham's rivals that Jermain Defoe will be a handful this season

'When you walk on that pitch you have to make sure you do well to stay in the team next week and there is no doubt Jermain is looking sharper than ever.

'JD is a player who loves playing football and scoring goals. He is a top player. I have played against him when I was at Nottingham Forest, and have to stop him in training now. He always makes it very difficult for defenders.

'When you see him in and around the box he knows how to score as he showed against Hearts. Hopefully he will score plenty for us this season.'

Spurs now have the weekend to prepare for Monday night's testing trip to Old Trafford where they will meet a Manchester United side who, if their early form is anything to go by, look destined to be crowned champions again next summer.

Tottenham have not won at Old Trafford for 22 years, but Dawson thinks victory is possible.

'Winning the way we did against Hearts has given us a lot of confidence,' he said.

'I know people will write us off, but while we have been there in recent seasons and not got the result we wanted, our performances have been good. Hopefully we can put things right on Monday.'

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Source: Daily Mail

Source: Daily Mail