David Moyes says that he looked at Luka Modric for Everton.
Moyes, who is without a managerial job at the moment following his departure from West Ham United at the end of last season, was in charge of Everton from 2002 until 2013.
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The former Manchester United and Sunderland manager has revealed that he scouted Modric when the Croatia international was still at Zagreb and before he moved to Tottenham in the summer of 2008 for a transfer fee reported by The Guardian to be worth £15.8 million.
Moyes wrote in The Times: “Everton were looking for a defender and I was there to scout a Dinamo Zagreb youngster called Vedran Corluka.
“Corluka was promising, but there was a little midfield player who quickly caught my eye instead. In looks he reminded me of Billy Bremner, with his blonde hair and small stature. In style he was different. He was very, very talented on the ball.
“After I came home, I kept talking about him — ‘I’ve seen this great little player in Croatia’. At the time Everton’s budget was limited and we weren’t looking for a player of his type, so I didn’t pursue him, but I kept tabs on his progress.
“Soon Manchester City signed Corluka, who later moved to Tottenham. And that brilliant little teammate of his that I’d seen — Luka Modric — joined him at White Hart Lane.”
Success
Modric is one of the best midfielders in the world and has been on top of his game for a number of years now.
The Croatia international is a serial winner, having won La Liga and Copa del Rey once each and the Champions League four times.
A silky footballer who can sense a killer pass and is also great at set-pieces, the 32-year-old is going strong as ever.
Modric has also played a key role for his country Croatia at the ongoing 2018 World Cup in Russia, as they have reached the quarter-finals of the prestigious competition.
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