Levy has set Eriksen asking price at £225m but there must be a middle ground

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Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has slapped a whopping 250 million euro (£250m) asking price on the head of Christian Eriksen amid interest from Real Madrid, as per Spanish outlet AS.

Levy has already negotiated one world-record fee with the Spanish giants – when Gareth Bale left for Spain in 2013 – and wants another for Eriksen.

The Champions League holders reportedly see the Dane as the ideal replacement for Luka Modric and have been alerted by his dwindling contract situation; his current deal has just 18 months to run and he is apparently stalling on signing a new one.

That seemingly gives Real the upper hand, but Levy has moved early to gain the initiative; setting the initial asking price so high to make Madrid forget any hopes of a cut-price deal and making the most of the fact the player is reportedly very settled and happy in London.

But Levy is a shrewd enough businessman to know that a compromise could be best for all parties, especially as the longer Eriksen stalls on signing a new deal, the less Tottenham can realistically demand for his services.

A fee of £150m for a player with 18 months on his deal would still be staggering, allowing Mauricio Pochettino to secure a replacement of similar class.

Alternatively, Levy could look to secure a part swap deal including the likes of Isco or Marco Asensio, to fill the void in one deal, without the need to re-enter the market.