For weeks, Bayern Munich has been all about the question: is Harry Kane coming? And if so, how expensive will it be? This hanging game is also due to the situation of Tottenham Hotspur. They are about to make a new start and are therefore under a lot of pressure.
Poker is about taking as many chips as possible from your opponents with good cards or good bluffing. If you now replace poker with transfer negotiations and chips with millions of euros, that is a good picture of the meanwhile dogged wooing of the German record champions FC Bayern Munich for the British star attacker Harry Kane (30 years) from Tottenham.
FCB Honorary President Uli Hoeneß was optimistic in mid-July that he would be able to free Kane: “He has clearly signaled in all discussions that his decision is in place. And if it stays, then we’ll get him.” Bayern’s new CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen and Technical Director Marco Neppe recently traveled to London, but despite a rumored offer of 90 million euros, the breakthrough is still a long time coming.
Tottenham are in a sporting depression
The tough poker game is also due to internal problems at the London club, which suffered two sackings last season. Tottenham are in a kind of depression after missing out on international business, finishing eighth (Aston Villa finished up a point in Conference League qualifiers) – an embarrassment for Spurs and their billionaire owner Joe Lewis.
Quite apart from the fact that said billionaire is currently being accused of insider trading by the US judiciary and he is only free on bail of 300 million US dollars, Tottenham Sand is in the management gear.
“Spurs” must prevent loss of quality desperately
Lewis’ business partner and club boss Daniel Levy now has to prevent himself from sinking into international insignificance, because missing out on European business makes other top clubs interesting for the stars.
On the access side, Tottenham has so far bought for standard English terms: attacking midfielder James Maddison (Leicester City) came for a good 46 million euros, right-back Pedro Porro (Sporting Lisbon) for 40, right winger Dejan Kulusevski (Juventus Turin) for 30. And Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario (FC Empoli) cost 20 million euros.
Will Kane become a ‘Lewandowski problem’ for Tottenham?
There is no one yet who could follow in Kane’s footsteps. Not surprising, because in this segment, world-class center forwards in particular now cost as much as the entire squad of a medium-sized club in the Bundesliga due to their rarity. In this respect, Tottenham fears a massive sporting loss, analogous to the Munich team, who were unable to compensate for the departure of Robert Lewandowski not too long ago and are therefore now after Kane.
Because the 30-year-old, together with Heung-min Son, is the last part of the time under Mauricio Pochettino between 2014 and 2019, when Tottenham missed the English championship and the Champions League victory once, and also had a permanent subscription to the European business.
The time game of the Londoners, who are probably simply hoping for more money from Bavaria in order to organize at least an adequate replacement for the star who is willing to emigrate by September 1st (end of the transfer phase), was also born out of the need of the downward trend.
New coach with sporting and fandiplomatic duties
The fact that the captain of the English national team, the face of his youth club, is willing to make a change weighs on the already gloomy mood anyway. Even among the fans, who are already not in good spirits about the club’s ticket price increase for the new season, because sportingly there are rather dark clouds hanging over the “Lilywhites”.
Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou scowls during a press conference.
The new Australian coach Ange Postecoglou has a long list of tasks to do, both athletically and in terms of support and diplomacy. When he took office, he explained in an almost pastoral tone that “the rebuilding” of Tottenham was an attractive challenge.
But Kane is also a hot topic for Postecoglou. When a “Bild” reporter deliberately provoked Tottenham’s coach with a Bayern jersey with Kane flock during the Australia and Asia trip, it spoiled his mood too: “You’ve come a long way for the laugh. Great. Hopefully it was worth it.” Restoring a good mood to north London will be a feat. With or without Kane.