The stock of quality midfielders Manchester United can actually get their hands on is running out, so they turn their attention to Luka Modric of Real Madrid, hoping the competition in the team’s midfield will be enough to sway to Croatian.
According to The Times, that’s Moyes’ new target after failing to land Thiago Alcantara and Cesc Fabregas of Barcelona. Marouane Fellaini is a name that keeps getting mentioned, but Moyes is either unsure about spending so much about the Belgian or he’s not getting approval from the board on a player no one is quite sure will actually be a sufficient upgrade to the team.
Modric didn’t have the best of debut seasons at Real Madrid, being behind both Xabi Alonso and Mesut Ozil in the depth chart when it came to the deep-playmaker role and the attacking midfielder. He did feature 33 times for Real Madrid in the league, mostly as a starter, but it’s safe to say he didn’t leave a huge impression on anyone.
But Modric seems to be very much in the plans of Carlo Ancelotti even though it’s pretty crowded in the Real Madrid midfield with Ozil, Isco, Illarramendi, Alonso and Sami Khedira. It’s hard to say what the end product will be in terms of lineup and hierarchy, not to mention the potential arrival of Gareth Bale that can stir things up, but Modric has started a few times already in this preseason.
Modric cost Real Madrid £26.4 million last season, and Manchester United are hoping that they can get the player at around the same amount, hoping that Real Madrid already selling Gonzalo Higuain this summer makes them a little less strapped for cash, and a little easier to negotiate with for a player they might not need that badly, or at least not as much as United need him.