Should he stay or should he go? Harry Kane’s future remains unclear amid interest away from north London
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Speculation surrounding the future of Harry Kane is never too far away from the media spotlight but with the 29-year-old’s contract at Tottenham now entering its final year, the rumour mill is really beginning to spin ahead of the 2023/24 season kickstarting in August.
Longstanding links to Manchester City have been ever-present in recent years, but with Erling Haaland making the move to the Etihad last summer and enjoying the most successful season in front of goal any player has ever done in Premier League history as City won an historic treble, it’s safe to say that Kane’s services will not be required on the blue side of Manchester any time soon.
So what options does that leave for the Tottenham talisman, as he approaches his 30th birthday and begins to enter the very early stages of his later career? England’s record goalscorer realistically has one big move left in him before prospective clubs begin to look elsewhere for their next front man and with his current deal at Spurs coming to an end this time next year, it brings him to somewhat of a crossroads.
Option one is the most straightforward: remain at Tottenham. Daniel Levy has offered Kane a huge new contract worth a reported £300,000-a-week and it goes without saying just how much the club would love to retain the services of their greatest ever player.
Kane is already a club legend having surpassed Jimmy Greaves’ tally of 275 goals last season and irrespective of what the next move entails for him – an unlikely transfer to Arsenal aside – will forever be remembered fondly in N17.
Remaining at Spurs and significantly increasing his salary will certainly be of appeal to Kane and he has reiterated on numerous occasions just how much winning silverware with his boyhood club would mean to him, although that is something which has for the last 15 years evaded Spurs and, based off last season’s performance, is something which doesn’t look remotely close to happening in the near future – even with one of the world’s best striker’s spearheading their attack.
Option two: move abroad. Bayern Munich have been credited with the heaviest interest in signing Kane this summer and reportedly tabled a bid worth £60m for the Englishman in June. Spurs swiftly rebuffed the approach but the German champions are expected to submit a second offer in the region of £80m in the coming weeks.
Even if Levy accepted that – and it is unlikely he would given he has been firm in his £100m valuation of Tottenham’s most valuable asset – it remains to be seen whether Kane would even want to move away from the Premier League to what is in comparison a second-rate league dominated by Bayern each and every season.
The plus side is that he would guarantee at least one trophy every year, with Bayern winning 11 consecutive league titles and likely to continue this trend for the foreseeable future – especially if they acquire a player of Kane’s quality. Bayern are also among the favourites for the Champions League each season and, unlike Spurs, can guarantee qualification to Europe’s elite knockout competition every year.
The downside is it would mean departing the Premier League and practically end his chances of beating Alan Shearer’s all-time goalscoring record in England’s top-flight. Kane currently finds himself just 47 goals behind the Newcastle legend – who netted 260 PL goals during his career – heading into the new campaign and you would back him to achieve that amount in the next two seasons should he remain on English shores.
Is that enough for him to stay put, though? Realistically Spurs are not going to win the Premier League or Champions League any time soon but neither are Manchester United or Chelsea – the two English clubs credited with the most interest in signing Kane.
Granted, both probably have a better chance of winning an FA Cup or League Cup (as United did last term), with Chelsea predicted to improve significantly under new manager Mauricio Pochettino following last season’s disasterclass and United’s transformation set to continue with ten Hag at the helm.
However, would a slightly improved chance of winning a domestic trophy be enough to tempt Kane away from the club where he has built such a legacy? Similarly, does the opportunity to become the Premier League’s all-time leading goalscorer take precedence over winning league titles and potentially the Champions League overseas?
These are all things Kane needs to weigh up at this crucial time of his career – a career which will be determined by its next move.
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