Tottenham midfielder Luka Modric could easily have been wearing Chelsea Blue today.
The Sunday Telegraph says Chelsea came close to signing him two years ago and it was reported that Roman Abramovich went so far as to fly Zdravko Mamic, the Dinamo Zagreb vice-president, to London in his private jet for talks. It was a flight in the other direction - taking Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to Zagreb - that proved decisive, however.
Spurs had courted Modric methodically. There was competition from Barcelona, Modric's first choice, but, like Chelsea, they doubted his readiness. With Arsenal also hovering - Arséne Wenger had asked about Modric when he signed Eduardo from Dinamo - Spurs moved fast, signing him up in April 2008, before he showed just how good he was at Euro 2008.
