Chelsea weigh up fresh bid for Tottenham’s Modric

Chelsea will decide this week whether to make a renewed bid for Luka Modric, chief executive Ron Gourlay has revealed.

The Blues have had two offers rejected for the Tottenham playmaker this summer, reportedly of £22 million and £27 million.

Spurs have repeatedly insisted Modric is not for sale but the Croatia star is said to have handed in a transfer request, accusing chairman Daniel Levy of reneging on an agreement to allow him to leave.

Gourlay said he would now discuss with new Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas whether the club should make a third bid for Modric or abandon their immediate plans to sign the 25-year-old.

Speaking at the end of their pre-season tour of the Far East, which saw them lift the Barclays Asia Trophy in Hong Kong, Gourlay told Sky Sports News: “I don’t like talking about players from other clubs, but that’s something we’ll look at during the week and we’ll take it from there.

“We really need to sit down with Andre and talk this through. Even though we’ve been travelling away, you can still be active in the marketplace nowadays.

“The communication is always there with our guys back in London or wherever they are at the present time around the world.”

Big-money signings have been conspicuous by their absence at Chelsea so far this summer, with Villas-Boas keen to assess his current squad and avoid panic buys.

The Blues have won all of their pre-season games under the Portuguese without conceding a goal, gradually improving the level of their performances.