Real Madrid midfielder Mateo Kovacic's agent plays down speculation linking him with Tottenham

Mateo Kovacic's agent has sought to dismiss speculation linking the Real Madrid star with a move to Tottenham and former club Inter Milan and insists the Spanish giants are 'very happy' with the Croatia international.

Kovacic has started 20 games in all competition for Zinedine Zidane's men this season but currently finds himself behind compatriot Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro for a starting berth at The Santiago Bernabeu. His agent, Nikki Vusan, is not overly concerned by his client's current situation, though, and believes he is seeing a sufficient amount of action on the pitch.

"I do not think Mateo is not playing enough," Vusan told FcInterNews.it, relayed by Goal. "Real Madrid are the European champions and this means they are made up of great players. [Luka] Modric is probably the world's best midfielder, [Toni] Kroos has won the World Cup with Germany and we must not forget other top players such as James [Rodriguez] or Isco.

"It is well known that there are so many stars at Real Madrid. And I must also say that I know for sure that the club are very happy with Kovacic."

Tottenham and Inter Milan are both interested in a £17.5m move for Kovacic, who joined Real Madrid for around £25m in the summer of 2015, but the Mirror claims the 22-year-old is happy in the Spanish capital. When pressed about the midfielder's long-term future, Vusan was seemed to proceed with caution.

"I don't want to answer to avoid speculation," Vusan added. "I don't know where I will be in five years, let alone if I can talk about a future of another person like Mateo."

In Mousa Dembele and Victor Wanyama, Tottenham have one of the strongest central midfield pairings in the Premier League, and Kovacic would have a real task on his hands to displace either the Belgian or Kenyan.

Mauricio Pochettino may have designs on bolstering his engine room ahead of next season, but his immediate focus is on Tottenham's title challenge, which could be all but over if they fail to beat bitter rivals Arsenal at White Hart Lane on Sunday (30 April).