Former Tottenham Hotspur defender John Scales has insisted that Andre Villas-Boas's first job at White Hart Lane should be to convince Luka Modric to stay.
The Croatian playmaker has been heavily linked with a move away North London, with Chelsea, Manchester United and Real Madrid all touted as potential suitors of the 26-year-old.
Villas-Boas was appointed as the new Spurs boss on Tuesday, and Scales is adamant that the former Blues chief must persuade Modric to stay.
"Modric may well be on his way, but it's not a foregone conclusion. I think there's an expectation that he will be on his way," Scales told talkSPORT.
"Tottenham did fantastically well to keep him out of the clutches of Chelsea and Man United last year. He's made it pretty clear that he wants to leave. They must sit down with Modric though and try to persuade him there's a bright future at the club.
"The board have to show him what kind of moves they're going to make in the transfer market this summer. Modric is key though, he's been such an integral part of the dynamic way Tottenham play."
Modric joined Spurs from Dinamo Zagreb in 2008.
Matt Cotton
