Michael Dawson backs Daniel Levy over Luka Modric stance
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Michael Dawson has backed Daniel Levy's tough stance over the Luka Modric transfer saga and insists that the Tottenham players are not angry at the Croatian for declaring that he wants to join Chelsea.
Modric has reportedly stepped up his attempt to force through a move to Chelsea by submitting a transfer request.
The Blues are determined to land the playmaker and could return with an improved bid of over £30million after seeing offers of £22million and £27million rejected.
Spurs are equally as determined to hang on to their man, however, and manager Harry Redknapp insisted this morning that the player would be staying at White Hart Lane despite today's reports to the contrary.
Tottenham chairman Levy has always maintained a tough no-compromise stance over Modric despite a stinging personal attack from the player last week in which he described the 49-year-old as "arrogant" and accused him of "twisting the facts" about what happened in a showdown meeting between the pair recently.
Levy vowed at the end of last season that none of the club's best players would be sold this summer and captain Dawson has backed his chairman's decision to stick to that stance.
"This time of year there are always going to be rumours and Luka's been linked with Chelsea," Dawson told Sky Sports News.
"From a team's point of view you want to keep your best players and the chairman has come out and said he is going to keep him so that is great for the football club.
"The chairman has come out and said no one is for sale so that's great."
Dawson and the rest of the Spurs squad landed in Johannesburg this morning for the first day of the club's 10-day pre-season tour.
The England defender insists that the players have not fallen out with Modric despite his very public attempt to engineer a move to one of the Tottenham's biggest rivals.
"We are all friends with Luka, we have got great team spirit amongst the players and we want to keep that together," Dawson added.
Spurs were unable to confirm today whether a transfer request had been received by the club, but it would hardly come as a surprise given that Modric has gone on the record three times recently stating his desire to move to Stamford Bridge.
Redknapp is aware of how damaging keeping a rebel in the ranks can be, but he is nevertheless certain that Modric will stay.
Redknapp told BBC Sport this morning: "We know he wants to leave and whether he writes it down on a piece of paper doesn't really make any difference to our stance.
"He's a great player and we don't want to lose him."
Redknapp will fly out to South Africa on Sunday to take charge of the club's second tour game against Orlando Pirates, with their first match being against Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday.
He will surely take time out of the club's tour to sit down with Modric and sort out his future to stop the saga stretching into the new season.
Redknapp has regularly pointed out that he needs to keep hold of the likes of Modric, Gareth Bale and Rafael Van der Vaart if he is to bring Champions League football back to White Hart Lane after finishing fifth last term.
The 64-year-old has been linked with Diego Forlan, Mirko Vucinic and Brazil striker Leandro Damiao this summer, but his only signing so far has been the free transfer of veteran goalkeeper Brad Friedel.
Modric is said to be keen to more than double his wages by moving to Chelsea, but a string of summer signings may help persuade the former Dinamo Zagreb man to stay.
Dawson is sure that it will only be a matter of time before there will be new arrivals at White Hart Lane.
"You always want to improve and freshen things up and I am sure the manager and chairman will be looking to do that," the defender said.
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