REAL Madrid football star Luka Modric has appeared in court in a tax fraud case in the Spanish capital.

Officials said Modric was in court for about 10 minutes with his wife and lawyer. His wife Vadja is also accused of tax irregularities.

Spanish prosecutors have accused the Croatian midfielder of defrauding tax authorities out of €870,728 (about £770,000) in 2013 and 2014.

Local newspaper El Mundo said he has already paid nearly €1m (£880,000) to tax authorities to try to reach a settlement even though the player has denied any wrongdoing. Court and tax officials say they cannot confirm or deny the payment – details of Modric’s court appearance have not been released.

He has been playing for Madrid since being signed from Tottenham in 2012.

Several other players have been targeted by Spanish tax authorities recently, including Lionel Messi, who two years ago was found guilty with his father of defrauding €4.1m (£3.6m) from income made from image rights.

Other players investigated include Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcelo, Ricardo Carvalho, Angel Di Maria, Javier Mascherano, Radamel Falcao and Fabio Coentrao.