Tottenham’s Harry Kane Conundrum
Got to know when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em.
A few weeks ago I wrote about Harry Kane’s future. This article’s purpose was to show how little bargaining power he had, particularly contrasted with Paul Pogba.
This piece also pointed out just how much power Spurs conversely held. But, what it didn’t do is wonder what Daniel Levy should actually do with all that control.
The Tottenham chairman can still choose to sell Kane, presumably for a fee in excess of £150 million. He could also just as easily decide to keep Kane and force him to reintegrate back into the squad.
What I will now do is try to answer that question by looking at the pros and cons of the situation, because I have largely come to the conclusion that this is not an easy decision for the club to make. There are valid arguments on both sides, so here I am: the transfer market centrist.
The pros to selling Kane seem pretty obvious at face value. A wantaway striker is gone, the morale around the club is boosted and they receive a record breaking amount of money for the pleasure.
With £150m+ received from Man City, they can put that right back into the team. They’ve already made some interesting signings. Christian Romero from Atalanta is a very unique defender who could give Spurs an added dimension in defence this season.
They were also linked with signing another centre back and Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan. Martinez is a very exciting player. He’s not quite on the level of Kane, but he could still link up well with Son Heung-Min.
However, Spurs reportedly had a €90 million bid rejected for Martinez. A centre back + that fee for Martinez leaves little room to improve the team elsewhere. It might still be enough to come out of it with a healthy squad, but perhaps going for another cheaper striker might end up being the better path forward.
(I wonder could Anthony Martial be an option, given their past interest and his decline down the Man United pecking order.)
The worry of spending so much on Martinez mostly comes from the problems in midfield. Pierre Emile Højbjerg has been a fantastic signing, but Dele Alli and Oliver Skipp as his midfield partners doesn’t seem ideal. Harry Winks off the bench isn’t much better either.
James Ward Prowse emerged as an option for Spurs last week, but they face competition from Aston Villa for his signature. Southampton, too, have been stubborn on his asking price so he might cost the club north of £30 million, which might not be possible with Martinez + a centre back.
Takehiro Tomiyasu has also been linked with a move from Bologna to Spurs, as has Nahitan Nandez from Cagliari.
It is interesting that so many of these players are from Serie A given Fabio Paratici’s appointment during the off-season. Is this a sign of a future direction for the club in the transfer window?
But, most importantly, Spurs have options if they sell Kane and could still build a solid team for Nuno Espírito Santo.
But would that team be as good as one with Kane in it?
Because the huge con to selling the England striker, most obviously, is that they are losing a high calibre, world class player.
At 28-years old, Kane is in his prime now and Spurs need to stick or twist. The window to sell him is closing. If he is to stay this Summer, that will likely keep him at the club for good.
Given that, Kane will have to get over the failed move to City and get back to playing for Tottenham. And a healthy and fit Kane will be a huge asset to the team.
The goal for Tottenham will be to get back into the Champions League. That is where the money is and it’s where the prestige is.
Pau Torres reportedly turned down a move to White Hart Lane this Summer because he doesn’t want to play in the Europa Conference League.
Are Tottenham more likely to qualify for the Champions League places with Kane in the team?
Given how terrible they were last season under Jose Mourinho, Kane and Son’s partnership still powered the team to seventh, and only five points off top four. Perhaps with a more competent and modern Portuguese manager they can challenge further?
However, the top four all look stronger this season, as do Leicester City. That means qualifying for the Europa League and then winning that in the following season looks to be Spurs’ best path back to the Champions League.
The current squad + Kane has the potential to be the sixth best team in England, but is it as guaranteed as the current squad + two or three new signings? That’s what Levy has to weigh up.
It isn’t an easy task, but my gut tells me that improving the squad by selling Kane and settling for sixth place this season should be the goal.
The best reason to keep Kane is if Spurs legitimately think that his presence and form can elevate the team to the top four and I just don’t see that.
As good as he is, the team has one too many holes that need to be filled for Kane to carry it back into the top four. Chelsea, Liverpool, City and Man United are too strong.
They could still keep him and follow that roadmap back to the Champions League, but Spurs will then be relying on Kane’s fitness issues to go away. By the time they’d reach the European Cup again he’d be 30 and at that stage it might be time to start looking to replace him anyway.
Daniel Levy, if you’re reading, you hold all the cards, but it might be time to cash-in on Kane and get out while the going is good.
