London, Jun 18: Tottenham's Croatian mid-fielder Luka Modric has openly expressed his desire to leave the club and hinted at the likelihood of joining Chelsea for the coming season. On Jun 15, Modric had received a £22million bid from the Chelsea, which was Tottenham's manager Harry Redknapp branded as 'ridiculous".

The midfielder has been a part of the White Hart Lane set-up since 2008 and is also being sought after by Manchester United, an offer he insists he will not consider as he wishes to leave on good terms.

The Daily Mail quoted him as saying, "I want to leave Tottenham as friends. I have enjoyed my time there, but now it is right for me to look at another club. I need to talk with the chairman. I won't ask for a transfer, no. That would be disrespectful. I don't want to have an argument with Tottenham."

He added, "I have an arrangement with the chairman. When I signed my new contract, he said that, if another club came to sign me, they would consider the offer. If somebody comes to the club and the offer is good for me and acceptable to them, then I want to leave."

Making it clear that he prefers to stay in London and giving sufficient hint that he would like to join Chelsea, the Croatian mid-fielder said, "I want to stay in London. I am very happy here and so are my family. I like the city...Chelsea are a big club with an ambitious owner. They have great players and they have ambitions to fight for the title and win the Champions League."

Stating his desire to leave Tottenham on amicable terms, he said, "I hope they [Tottenham] can reach an agreement [with another club] that is satisfactory for everyone. I am on holiday, but I need to speak and to see if I can find a solution to this. t has to be good for my ambition. It has to be a club who are winning titles and playing in the Champions League. This is not about money, it is about ambition. When I came to England, I was dreaming about winning titles. That is still the same."

Praising the supporters of Tottenham, he said, "The supporters have been very good to me and I have enjoyed my time playing for the club, but it is for football that players leave clubs and move. It has happened to Tottenham before. It is normal for a player to dream about playing for a bigger club. Tottenham are a big club, with good players and a good manager, but I want to fight for the championship. Spurs will always have a place in my heart. My experiences in the Champions League have left me with the desire for more."

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