Manchester City do not have much bargaining power as they try to prise Harry Kane from Tottenham.
The England captain has three years left on his deal in North London, meaning there is at least 12 months before Daniel Levy even has to consider selling him to avoid losing him on the cheap. City have a number of players in their squad that want to leave, yet how many of those are willing to swap the Champions League for the Europa Conference League and one city where it rains a lot for another where it rains a lot – especially if it involves a cut in wages?
Of course it helps that the player himself and his camp are keen to secure a transfer, yet despite a late arrival back for pre-season Kane is hardly the type to down tools if he does not get what he wants.
One looming figure Txiki Begiristain can point to in negotiations though is Erling Haaland. The 21-year-old wunderkind has very quickly become one of the most exciting talents in world football and had Pep Guardiola purring about him ahead of City’s Champions League quarter-final with Dortmund last season.
City were keen on signing him this summer, only for Dortmund to earn a top-four finish in the Bundesliga and strengthen their position enough to be able to keep hold of him for another year.
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He is expected to be available in 12 months though when a release fee of between £65m and £80m has been reported as kicking in, and his agent has already travelled to Barcelona and Real Madrid to court interest in the superstar forward. Five goals and three assists in his opening two matches of the 21/22 campaign suggest his reputation will only grow over the coming season.
If City cannot land Kane this summer, picking between him and Haaland next year looks like being as one-sided a contest as last season’s Premier League. It’s not that City would be returning with less money for Kane, they simply wouldn’t be offering Spurs anything at all – or at least that is certainly the message that can be drilled home in negotiations over the next two weeks.
Manchester City are aiming big this summer where transfers are concerned, as they aim to defend their league crown — and it could be a very exciting summer.
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Indeed, while not signing a striker in this transfer window would represent a failed objective for City there are plenty of supporters who would rather wait a year to sign the more exciting, younger player who can offer more value.
Taking no more offers for Kane may not be a bad thing for Levy, yet the businessman cannot fail to see that this may not just be his best shot since Gareth Bale left of bringing in a whopping fee for a player but could be his only chance of doing so before Kane becomes more priceless to Spurs while worth increasingly little in the transfer market.
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