England captain and Tottenham talisman Harry Kane has been the subject of intense speculation ahead of this summer’s transfer window. With his contract running out as of summer 2024, time is running out for Spurs’ chairman Daniel Levy to fetch any sort of fee for his prized asset.
As a result, many have forecast this to be the year where Kane finally leaves for a new club in his bid to finally earn some silverware.
Manchester United were leading the race to sign the 29-year-old, with the lure of potentially breaking Alan Shearer’s Premier League goal record and the ability to challenge City in next few seasons. However, a hammer blow was dealt to the Red Devils earlier this week as Levy has once again thrown a spanner in the works. The chairman’s stance on Kane has forced United to end their pursuit of the Tottenham forward after his demands for Spurs’ all-time leading goalscorer proved too steep and verging on unrealistic.
Erik ten Hag has now shifted focus away from his top priority as he looks to complete his business early in the transfer window much to the disappointment of both the club and probably Kane himself. For the time being then, the Dutchman still has work to do to relieve the goalscoring burden off Marcus Rashford but it is unlikely to spell the end of this saga just yet.
As the prospect of Spurs letting Kane go on a free gains traction, the chances of Levy abandoning his typically stubborn stance grows. While all indications suggest that it’s done, there is still a part of this move that seems like an unconventional negotiation strategy to try and force Levy’s hand as the clock ticks down. It’s an outside chance now granted but Kane heading to United seems like the best outcome for all parties involved on almost every level. He would undoubtedly bolster United’s Premier League aspirations next year, and here’s why.
Kane is one of the most prolific goalscorers of his generation and one of the greatest in Premier League history. There were only 27 players to have scored at least 200 top flight goals in England in history before Kane became the 28th this season.The Englishman has now scored 213 in 320 Premier League games and after managing to add a massive 30 goals to that tally in a lacklustre Tottenham side this season, the Premier League goalscoring record is within his grasp. He is 29-years-old, coming off the back of one of his best goalscoring seasons and he is just 48 goals away from setting a new one. While all these statistics would suggest it’s all about the numbers with Kane, his buildup play and work off the ball is just as valuable to the team as his reliability in front of goal. He is brilliant at holding the ball up, works tirelessly, creates opportunities for others, and makes significant and crucial defensive contributions. He has also developed one of the best passing games in the league to make up for what he has lost in pace.
Even if defenders have managed to stop him shooting this year, Kane often found a teammate in a stronger position. By most metrics it has been one of his best seasons to date. However, it will taste bitter sweet for the Englishman who is no closer to lifting his first piece of major silverware in his career, nor was it enough to earn Spurs a European spot. Having failed to make the top seven for the first time since 2008, Kane earns the unwanted accomplishment of becoming the first player to score 25 or more goals for a team outside the top seven. It goes to show how vital his contributions have been to Spurs this season as without his performances Tottenham could easily have been in the bottom half of the table, if not flirting with a rather embarrassing relegation battle. In this respect, it’s easy to see why Levy is so reluctant to let Kane go; he’s well aware of the chasm he would leave behind. That calibre of player that can single-handedly make a difference to a club’s fortunes in the way has is a game-changer that would make anyone’s team stronger, even more so United’s.
As things stand UK betting sites have Manchester United at 17/2 to win the Premier League next season, and the reason the odds are that good is largely down to the exploits of their star forward. Rashford enjoyed his best season to date for United, netting 30 goals in his 55 appearances for the club in 2022/23. The homegrown talent’s performances helped United claim the Carabao Cup and a Champions League spot for next season as he proved to be one of the most important cogs in Ten Hag’s machine. However, there was a lot of pressure put on the 25-year-old to deliver with the team often over-reliant on the Englishman’s contributions at various points throughout the campaign.
The likes of Anthony Martial and Wout Weghorst have fallen short up front either due to injury or untimely dips in form and the result is that United now found themselves in desperate need of another attacking option to relieve the burden felt by Rashford. Kane doesn’t fix the scale of the problem entirely by himself but he certainly helps. Bruno Fernandes has been the chief provider yet again this season with 13 assists but the conversion rate from number of chances created to goals scored has not made for good reading. Creating the chances and putting them away come hand in hand and there would be no better option available to United to fix that problem than Kane. The England captain has scored no fewer than 17 goals in a league campaign since 2014 and he would also make his fair share of contributions in creating chances too.
United went behind on 14 occasions this season, from those positions they only managed to secure 11 points, winning three and drawing two. If United managed to improve their chance conversion in front of goal then there is no reason to suggest that they wouldn’t accumulate more points and put themselves in a competitive position for a title challenge. With Kane in their ranks they pose a much greater threat, have a much better chance of converting those chances and as a result would absolutely be title contenders next season. United fans will have their fingers firmly crossed that a miraculous U-turn in this ongoing transfer saga is on the cards.
