Manchester United are on the hunt for a forward after finding their latest short-term solution to an issue that has haunted several managers since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013.
Since then, United have not found a consistent forward who delivers each season and have resorted to stop-gap options, with Wout Weghorst becoming the latest after Cristiano Ronaldo controversially left the club.
Tottenham Hotspur star Harry Kane has attracted longstanding interest from the Old Trafford club but a deal has always been difficult to broker due to Daniel Levy’s insistence on not selling to a Premier League club.
Kane has less than 18 months left on his current deal at Tottenham and despite the increasingly realistic prospect that their all-time top goalscorer could be running his contract down, new reports have delivered a fresh blow to United in their pursuit of the 29-year-old.
According to The Times, Kane’s contract situation is not going to make a deal for United easier as Tottenham are still refusing to entertain any talks of allowing Kane to join one of their Premier League rivals.
Kane’s hopes of breaking Alan Shearer’s Premier League goalscoring record will need to be realised at Tottenham, with the only possible exit strategy for the England star currently being a move abroad.
As per the report, United are interested in Napoli forward Victor Osimhen. The two forwards would demand similar fees but Osimhen has age on his side.
SN’s verdict…
Any hopes of signing Kane seem to be long gone but if Erik ten Hag is keen on bringing the player to Old Trafford, Tottenham’s resolve should be tested in the summer.
It does, however, feel like that ship sailed when he committed to a six-year contract in 2018 – a decision that ultimately cost him a big-money move.
Osimhen will have two years remaining on his contract at Napoli at the end of this season and that is usually when clubs are keen to sell. Napoli are tough at the negotiation table, however, and could just as well dig their heels in and keep the Nigerian superstar.
