5 Players who forced a move away from their club
The transfer window lays out an opportunity for clubs to reinforce their squads and potentially add to the existing talent at their disposal. It also provides teams with an opportunity to clinch exits for the players they want to get rid of.
But the window also allows unsettled players to hand in their transfer requests and move away from their current clubs. It's a big headache for managers as players even go AWOL to force a move away from the club. In some cases, they refuse to attend training and even feign injuries to express their displeasure.
Harry Kane was recently missing from Tottenham Hotspur training as he looks to force a move to Premier League champions Manchester City. As the England talisman's transfer saga continues, we take a look at 5 top-flight stars who successfully forced a transfer away and how they went about it.
#5 Virgil van Dijk - Southampton to Liverpool
When Virgil van Dijk eventually signed for Liverpool at the end of 2017, his move was in the making for almost an entire year. After the Reds identified him as their number one target, they pulled out all the stops to try to get the Dutch international.
Jordon Henderson, who shares the same agent as Van Dijk, spoke to the former Southampton defender about the benefits of joining the Merseyside club. Reports also emerged that Van Dijk met Jurgen Klopp one-on-one in Blackpool and received a contract offer worth £180k-a-week.
In light of this, Southampton accused Liverpool of making an illegal approach. The Merseyside outfit swiftly released an apology in which they also claimed to have ended their interest in the Dutchman. But Van Dijk, with his heart set on a move to Anfield, took matters into his own hands. He handed in a transfer request after being left out of the club's pre-season squad and was told to train alone by Maurizio Pellegrino.
Eventually, it worked. Virgil van Dijk's determination to leave was seen as a reason for Klopp and Michael Edwards to continue their pursuit. Within three years of his move, Van Dijk lifted the Champions League and the Premier League with the Reds.
#4 Luka Modric - Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid
In the summer of 2011, Luka Modric grew impatient with Tottenham Hotspur and their refusal to sell him. To complicate matters, he had signed a six-year contract extension with Spurs the previous year. But according to Modric, a gentleman's agreement had also been reached with the chairman, Daniel Levy, that if a bigger club came in for him, the offer would be considered.
With Chelsea circling, Levy was clearly reluctant to sell to a direct rival. Modric accused the chairman of threatening to take him out of the first team if he didn't accept the club's position. The club, meanwhile, claimed that the so-called gentleman's agreement did not exist.
Modric hit back by claiming Levy had given the public a twisted account of what happened. The Croatian midfielder missed the first game of the season and requested to be left out of the next fixture. But he ultimately stayed at White Hart Lane for the 2011-12 campaign.
The following summer, Modric's non-compliance worked. He missed training and failed to show up to the club's pre-season tour of the USA. Levy held out of a fee of close to £40 million from Real Madrid. However, Modric eventually got his dream move to Spain, and Spurs had to settle for the £31 million fee initially put forward by Los Blancos.