Quality Control at the Daily Mail

Is there any?

Not content with stirring up the hornet's nest over Modric - and other outrageous stories too numerous to mention - their latest garbage suggests that Villarreal are going to buy Sandro for £12m.

Now, as a NewsNow addict I'm more than prepared to accept that certain ropey sites (sportsvibe, transfertavern footylatest, Bleacher etc) like to make stuff up and publish it under the pretense of news. I don't mind that so much, not at all; it helps pass the day. However, I really do think that a national newspaper - irrespective of your opinions regarding their politics - have a duty to be considerably more responsible. Any follower of football with functioning eyes and even the slightest understanding of economics must be able to see what a joke this is.

So, for the benefit of the bravely anonymous "Sportsmail Writer" let me point out a few fatal flaws in your hypothesis:

1. He's only been a Spurs player for a year
2. He has been arguably one of the finds of the season
3. He is still young and obviously has great promise
4. We paid £8m, so considering the above points your £12m valuation is laughable
5. Read these quotes - does this sound like player looking to leave?

I could go on, but you get the gist. I'm sure the 1,056 pedants amongst you ;-) will point out that the offending article merely suggests that the Spaniards are "opening tentative talks" with his agent - but are they? Are they really? Where is the reference to some kind of evidence? Blow me, could we not even be arsed to make up a quote this time?

I can almost guarantee that this story doesn't make it into the paper itself, so why is it acceptable to put it on the website? This, as you may have noticed, really grinds my gears.

Just another reason to impose a Fergie-esque ban on any communication with them if you ask me.

Cahill: A Great Bit Of Business?

Now that bruising hoofmeister silky ball player Gary Cahill has a couple of Eng-er-land caps to his name, those elements of the media we adore so much (namely those who can't bear to see a player at a club "beneath" him) have come to the logical conclusion that he'll be moving on.

However, unlike other notable transfer sagas of late, this time the player seems to have had a giant "For Sale" sign stapled to his imposing forehead, by none other than his own manager. Owen Coyle is said to be resigned to losing the player and, as a smart man, would undoubtedly prefer a player plus cash deal rather than 20 million big ones stowed safely in the box marked "Petty Cash" (at least according to people in the press/on the internet that make this stuff up that is anyway).

So, what with Spurs currently having more defenders that a 1980's video game arcade, what kind of deal would we propose (because it's easy, all this making-up-transfers business). I guess it's obvious though - Bassong and/or Hutton (unless they want Bongani Khumalo who, at 24, is plying his trade at Preston North End these days - make of that what you will). Anyway, one has to assume they'd be looking for proven Premiership quality experienced Premiership players so we'll stick with these 2. Bassong, Hutton and £6m seems like a reasonable deal to me.

I have to say that I think this would be a cracking bit of business. Gallas only has another year of expecting to be first choice, King could collapse in a heap at any given moment and although I do like Kaboul, I think he's probably a better right back and/or squad player. Dawson and Cahill at the heart of the defence for the next 5 years - yes bloody please. You never know, we might actually score more goals from corners too.

Defensive duties split between:

RB: Corluka, Walker, Kaboul
CB: King, Dawson, Gallas, Cahill, Kaboul
LB: Benny, erm... Bale? Rose?

Oh, maybe we need a 'proper' LB too?

Modric: Are We REALLY Taking a Stand?

This time last week I was 100% certain that, should a shady looking character with an eastern European accent turn up on Daniel Levy's doorstep with a suitcase full of £50 notes, to the tune of £40m or so, that dear old Luka would be on his way. But you know what, cynical as I am prone to be on such matters, I now think we might actually be making a stand this time!

Now, I know from reading the internet, that many people have a dislike of Harry's flirtations with journalistic types. Not me though, I've always thought he handles them quite well. I'd rather have him answering questions than not, even if sometimes the answers aren't what we want to hear. However, you've got to give it to him, he's played an absolute blinder with this Modric business.

Levy seems to be sticking to his "not-for-any-money" statements, but I think it's natural, given recent history, to be a little distrustful of these. However, if Harry keeps sticking the knife in at every opportunity by reminding the world of what the chairman has promised him, then Levy is going to find it extremely difficult to accept even an enormous offer - it would make him look a right pillock.

I think it would take Modders to kick up a Berbatov-esque stink, hand in a transfer request and for that £40m+ offer to be sitting on the fax machine for there to be a chance of this happening - otherwise how the hell is the chairman going to justify it? Call me naieve, but it's a set of circumstances I'm finding more and more unlikely with every passing day. Yes he's made some ill advised comments recently, but I don't hold that against him. I want to believe he was lead astray by agents, that maybe the interviewer was asking leading questions, that perhaps they were taken out of context. Maybe they weren't, but hopefully he'll have yet another change of tune when he realises he has to stay. If and when that day comes he'll need to say something to pacify the brokenhearted, even if those words are hollow and meaningless.

Come September the 1st, what I would love - even more than a sparkly new £30m striker, would be for Luka Modric to still be a Spurs player. Not because I think we'd be lost without him (I actually think Bale would be a bigger loss) but because it would prove to me, and the rest of the world, that we are not a selling club, that the chairman cares more about the quality of the team than the quality of his bank balance, that he IS a man of his word, that a contract is a contract and should the big guns come sniffing round our next big superstar 12 months from now, that there's a new track record of us NOT selling, no matter how much pressure we get put under.

Now that would be sweet.

Modric: We've been here before

Call me cynical, but this business with Mr. Modric has a very familar feeling about it. It’s almost identical to the early stages of the Berbatov saga, and before him the Carrick saga.

I don’t quite know why the press are so obsessed with cultivating a climate where they believe the only the top 4 deserve to employ best players in the league, but for 4-6 weeks now they have been craftily regurgitating snippets and mis-quotes from all involved in this particular ball-ache.

One might almost be led to believe that they are in the employ of said clubs – but surely not; that would be unethical, and ‘proper’ journo’s would do that would they?!? My worry is that when a story like this refuses to go away, there HAS to be a hidden agenda somewhere.

Whatever the case, these weeks of careful sniping and gossipmongering have finally resulted in Chelsea’s laughable bid – but the main point we should be considering here is not the figure, but the fact that the bid is the next phase of what any reasonable person can see as a not-so-subtle campaign that is only a heartbeat away from illegal “tapping up”. Yes, there may have bneen no sneaky contact and underhand promises made between Luka and his suitors, but you can’t look at all this and not consider that the outcome could well be the same.

In the coming weeks we will no doubt see that figure creep up towards, and maybe beyond the £35m mark. £35m + Drogba, tempted? What about £50m? Realists will tell you everyone has their price, and they’d be true. Imaginne for one second that they come in with £60m. Do you see Levy turning that down? I certainly don’t.

Devil’s advocate here asks you this: Would you swap Luka – who, whilst being a great player, is conspicuosly absent from any European or World Player of the Year lists at the moment – for 3 players of £20m+ calibre? After all, VDV can play that central role, then we could also go back to 4-4-2. If it happened like that it might actually make us stronger next year!

Anyway, let’s be honest with ourselves; as much as we love our super Spurs, until such point as we can convince the rest of the world that we are regular top 4 material, we’re going to have to go through this rigmarole every year. Today Modric, tomorrow Bale.

To answer my own question, Luka has to stay. I know those at the club don’t like to dcomment on specualtion, but they must see this is different. I want to see a statement on the site by the end of the week where Levy says he’s not for sale – even at £100m.

Levy needs to take a stand – not because Luka Modric is irreplacable, because to be brutal; he isn’t, but just to show us, the players and the rest of the world, that we will NOT be bullied into selling our best.

That’s worth more than 60 million pieces of silver.