Harry Kane wants to join Bayern Munich after holding positive talks over personal terms with the German champions, who are pushing to agree a fee with Tottenham Hotspur for the striker.
Bayern stepped up their interest in Kane after submitting an opening bid of £60m plus add-ons, which has been deemed too low, and will need to reach at least £100m to stand any chance of the deal going through. However, Kane’s contract expires next summer and he has shown little sign of wanting to sign an extension, leaving Spurs at risk of losing him on a free transfer.
The uncertainty around Kane’s contract could boost Bayern’s chances and will be a consideration for the Spurs chairman, Daniel Levy, as he prepares for a fight to keep the club’s star player. Sources have continued to insist that Spurs will reject any offer for Kane this summer and it remains to be seen if Bayern are willing to go as high as £100m. Levy could decide to accept a slightly lower offer if it means not having to lose the 29-year-old to a Premier League rival.
Bayern’s bid is being driven by their head coach, Thomas Tuchel, who wants to sign an elite No 9 to fill the void left by the sale of Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona last summer. Tuchel is a huge admirer of Kane and tried to bring him to Stamford Bridge two years ago. The German is also trying to muscle in on United’s move for Mason Mount, the Chelsea midfielder.
One stumbling block for Bayern was Kane’s apparent reluctance to leave England. Spurs struggled last season, though, finishing eighth and missing out on European football, and Kane has been forced to consider his future. He is ready to move to Germany and knows that joining Tuchel’s team would give him an excellent chance of ending his wait for a first trophy.
Bayern, whose forward targets also includes Juventus’s Dusan Vlahovic, Eintracht Frankfurt’s Randal Kolo Muani and Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, will also be contenders to win the Champions League.
Tuchel replaced Julian Nagelsmann at the Allianz Arena in March but was unable to stop Bayern from losing to Manchester City in the last eight of the Champions League. Bayern have not been as free-scoring since losing Lewandowski.
They replaced the Poland striker with Sadio Mané but the former Liverpool forward has not lived up to expectations. Mané is not a traditional No 9 and tends to thrive in wide positions.
Kane would provide Bayern with a much greater guarantee of goals. He struck 41 times for club and country last season and is in good physical condition. He has struggled with ankle problems in the past but has avoided injury recently.
Meanwhile, Tottenham made a breakthrough with Leicester over the transfer of James Maddison on Tuesday evening . They have they opened talks with Leicester, who are under pressure to sell following their relegation from the Premier League, and have now reached a verbal agreement on a £40m transfer fee.
Although the payment structure and add-ons are still to be ironed out, Spurs hope to conclude a deal for the attacking midfielder this week. The England international has a year left on his deal.
Leicester rejected a joint bid for Maddison and Harvey Barnes from Spurs earlier this month.
Spurs emerged as frontrunners for Maddison after Newcastle cooled their interest in the 26-year-old. Newcastle’s focus is on completing a £60m deal for Sandro Tonali, the Milan midfielder.
Ange Postecoglou, the new Spurs manager, is expected to line up his side in a 4-3-3 formation. Signing Maddison would increase the creativity at Postecoglou’s disposal. Maddison has been an excellent signing for Leicester since joining them from Norwich City in 2018 and his form last season earned him a place in England’s squad for the 2022 World Cup. He scored 10 goals last season but could not save Leicester from relegation.
As well as closing in on Maddison, Tottenham completed the signing of 26-year-old goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario from Empoli .
Spurs have been searching for a long-term successor for their captain, Hugo Lloris, and the Italian keeper has signed a five-year deal in a move worth £16.4m.
Spurs also confirmed Postecoglou will be joined in north London by Mile Jedinak, the former Crystal Palace captain, who has left his post as Aston Villa’s loan development coach to become an assistant coach alongside Ryan Mason and Matt Wells. Former Liverpool, Swansea and Leicester coach Chris Davies has been named as senior assistant coach, while former Spurs goalkeeper Rob Burch returns to the club as first team goalkeeping coach.
