Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has expressed his desire to see Real Madrid star Luka Modric return to the North London club in the upcoming season. Redknapp recently appeared on TalkSPORT and spoke about his admiration for Modric, who spent four years at Tottenham from 2008 to 2012.
During his time at Tottenham, Modric made 160 appearances, scoring 17 goals and providing 25 assists, according to Transfermarkt. He subsequently moved to Real Madrid for a reported fee of £30 million, where he has now made 472 appearances, scoring 37 goals and providing 76 assists.
Modric has won numerous titles with Madrid and has even won the Ballon d’Or award for his individual performances. However, he recently reminisced about his time at Tottenham and praised the team’s style of play, according to a feature with BT Sport.
In the same feature, Modric also spoke about Redknapp’s influence on his playing style and how the former Tottenham manager had chosen to play him in the midfield. Redknapp returned the compliment during his appearance on TalkSPORT and spoke highly of Modric’s playing ability.
Redknapp said, “What a player! Do you know you used to come in in the mornings and you’d have a piggy for piggy in the middle, after four years I said, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen you go in the middle.’ He never gave it away, what a great lad.”
Redknapp also mentioned that Modric is still a fantastic player, despite being 37 years old, and that he would be happy to see him back at Tottenham. He even suggested that Liverpool, Tottenham’s biggest rival, would be interested in signing Modric if he were available.
Redknapp concluded by saying that he loved working with Modric because he was low maintenance and “just lives for football.” It remains to be seen whether Modric will leave Madrid and return to Tottenham, but his former manager’s words suggest that he would be a valuable addition to the club.