How Tottenham’s Harry Kane decision could spark transfer explosion impacting Chelsea and Man Utd

Harry Kane is causing commotion, a European-wide gridlock whereby strikers across the continent are seemingly waiting for moves and simply nothing is happening.

Romelu Lukaku, Dusan Vlahovic and Randal Kolo Muani are among those impacted, so too Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, although England captain Kane may well point the finger at his French counterpart and say he is the reason for this transfer impasse.

Their situations are strikingly similar, but change could be afoot, a point that should come with a warning given this feels like déjà vu. But let’s press on. Both have one year remaining on their contracts, neither intend to sign a new deal, and while PSG have dropped Mbappe from their pre-season tour in a bid to speed up the process, Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy has also been advised to act.

The call is from Spurs owner Joe Lewis no less, the British billionaire who is unwilling for Kane to run down his contract and leave on a free next summer, which would open up the possibility of a Premier League rival signing the 29-year-old.

The sticky point though is Spurs’ valuation for a player who could leave for nothing in 12 months’ time.

At a time where PSG are hoping for a world-record fee for Mbappe – Al Hilal have offered £259m, apparently, for the striker who seemingly only has eyes for Real Madrid – Levy is holding out too and reportedly wants £100m, but having already put off Manchester United, it appears only Bayern Munich remain to negotiate a deal with.

So far Bayern have seen two offers for Kane rejected, the first being £60m plus add-ons, the second £70m with add-ons. A third offer is said to be in the offing, but unless they make a sizeable leap then the German champions are unlikely to meet Spurs’ £100m wish.

Negotiations could well rumble on, but it would be better for all involved if the words of Ange Postecoglou are heeded. “I think, for everyone concerned, we don’t want to be doing it for too long,” he said last week.

“I don’t think that is good for anyone. I don’t think it is good for Harry, I don’t think it is good for the club because, as laser-focused as we want to be, you end up repeating yourself along the way.”

With Kane’s wife Kate house-hunting in Bavaria, according to German outlet Bild, this transfer traffic jam shows signs of lifting, but arguably only if Levy accepts below asking price.

It would mean Bayern are no longer focused on other targets, including Juventus’ Vlahovic and Kolo Muani of Eintracht Frankfurt, and free up the possibility of this duo moving elsewhere.

Kolo Muani, the 24-year-old France international who scored 23 goals last season, has been linked with Manchester United, and he could be an alternative for Erik ten Hag and his desire for a new No 9 should they be quoted too high a price for Atalanta’s Rasmus Hojlund.

Vlahovic, meanwhile, is a reported target for Chelsea in a deal that could see Lukaku go the other way, but once more any agreement looks far off in this merry-go-round where every seat is taken but no one is pressing go.

It is why the analogies are plentiful and many are left exasperated by the transfer market, a sport played at speed on the pitch reduced to a game of poker or chess off it, and it feels particularly stagnant whenever the notoriously hardball Levy is at the heart of negotiations.

Levy does of course though have a club to run. He may soon be forced into action by his own boss, but he is unlikely to rush selling Kane unless Spurs have a plan to replace the man with 213 Premier League goals, the player most responsible for the club enjoying five Champions League campaigns in the last seven years.

Vlahovic or Kolo Muani, then? A simple case of chasing Bayern’s own alternatives? That may not be so simple without the dangling-carrot that is the Champions League, or any European football for that matter, but the answer may come from within anyway – if they believe Richarlison is ready to step up.

Richarlison cut a frustrated figure last season. Brazil’s starting No 9 at the World Cup was used sparingly during his first season at Spurs and had a fractured relationship with former head coach Antonio Conte.

The striker scored three goals in all competitions, and started just 12 Premier League games, coming off the bench 15 times and only scoring his first league goal for Spurs in April against Liverpool.

He was once more on the bench in Spurs’ opening pre-season friendly as Kane started in the 3-2 defeat to West Ham, and so whether Postecoglou or Levy deem Richarlison a worthy replacement remains to be seen.

And again, this all hinges on Kane. A move to Germany looks like his only option, but an agreement must be reached at a time when Bayern’s Sadio Mane is also considering an offer from Saudi Arabia‘s Al-Nassr. Yes, that’s another striker potentially on the move.

So let’s see what the week brings us then, shall we, but when a saga goes on as long as this – few will be holding their breath in anticipation. It’s on you, Levy.