Real Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui has said Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic are happy at the club, and the mood has not been affected by reports that both want to leave.
Recent reports have claimed that Modric is trying to push through a move to Inter Milan, while Kovacic has gone on strike to force a transfer.
But speaking in New York ahead of Tuesday’s International Champions Cup clash with Roma, Lopetegui said he believed both Croatia internationals were content.
“The level of excitement is as high as it can be, as it is with most of the players,” he said. “My understanding is that both are happy to be here.”
Modric is due to begin preseason preparation on Wednesday, but AS claimed he could be paid €60 million to spend the next two seasons at Milan before joining Chinese club Jiangsu Suning.
“The president [Florentino Perez] was clear and unequivocal,” Lopetegui said. “We’re in no doubt at all that Modric is going to continue playing for us just as he has been.”
Marca reported that Kovacic is “in rebellion” and will not return to training until his wish to leave the Bernabeu in search of more regular first-team football is granted.
Kovacic, who joined from Inter Milan for €30m in 2015, trained in Madrid on Monday.
“I’ve not seen that he’s gone on strike,” Lopetegui said. “He trained normally. Mateo is a member of the squad, and I am delighted with him.”
With midfielder Toni Kroos this week saying it would be “difficult” for Madrid to replace the 50 goals a season previously all but guaranteed by Cristiano Ronaldo, Lopetegui said he had no problem with not having yet signed a high-profile replacement.
“My conversations with the club are private, but we are fully on the same page,” he said. “One of recent history’s most important players has left.
“I see this is an opportunity to move forward as a collective, and fulfil the demands at this club.”
A diminutive midfielder, Modrić is described as a quick and creative playmaker, with great vision, who is able to change the course of the game with a deft pass, or with a solo, long-range effort.
He is able to play with both feet and combines this with his swift, offensive positioning off the ball.He is noted for his ability to pass the ball accurately across long or short distances, even with the outside of his boot, as well as his ball control, first touch, positional play, and his ability to retain possession[42] and set the tempo of the game.
A former attacking midfielder, he is also noted for his passing range and dribbling skills, and is considered as a master of the “pre-assist”.
He is often referred to as the Midfield Maestro (“Midfield Master”) for his mastery of footballing fundamentals, tactical strategy, and precision in execution.
His tactical vision and strategic planning has had him compared to a conductor of an orchestra, a “puppet master”, and a “midfield magician”.When arrived at Real Madrid he was nicknamed by the Spanish media as El Pájaro (“the bird”), while in the dressing room was simply called “Lukita”
Modrić’s complex game has brought him consistent success in the clubs for which he has played. Initially a trequartista or attacking midfielder at Dinamo Zagreb and in his early career at Tottenham, in the 2010–11 season he flourished in a central midfield role as a deep-lying playmaker (regista) who conducts the attack and creates chances for teammates.
Although a central midfielder, Modrić is also a hard-working player who has been seen to adopt a defensive midfield role in addition to playmaking, tracking back to win the ball from the opposition and prepare for a counter-attack, making him one of the most versatile players in the world, capable of playing in several midfield positions.
According to Jonathan Wilson, in a 4–2–3–1 system Modrić is a third type of a holding midfielder, being “neither entirely destructive or creative”, but a “carrier” who is “capable of making late runs or carrying the ball at his feet”, but in his case “with a hint of regista”