Manchester United have identified the England captain as their primary target to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.
Manchester United have identified Harry Kane as their prime target. (Image: Visionhaus via Getty Images)
Harry Kane might be getting a sense of déjà vu as speculation over his future continues to mount.
It has somehow been two years since Manchester City were priced out of a move for the England captain by Tottenham chairman and fearsome negotiator Daniel Levy – but the cards are no longer stacked in Levy and Spurs’ favour, with Kane only having 15 months left to run on his contract amid outlined interest from Manchester United.
Acting as the proverbial first domino, Kane staying put the summer before last and the whole saga around his signature prompted City to wait for Erling Haaland instead, while Cristiano Ronaldo came and went once again as his second coming at Old Trafford was brought to a premature and controversial end.
Even if present-day Tottenham dig their heels in, Kane himself would bring no drama and Erik ten Hag clearly recognises the attributes he offers by making the goalgetter his primary target for a new striker, but the push to sign him will be determined upstairs as those involved get ready to crunch some numbers.
In reality, though, the only figures that matter for United is how many goals Kane would score and across how many seasons. According to the man himself, the target is sky-high.
Kane raised eyebrows the summer before last when going so public about his aims and ambitions in what was a revealing interview with none other than former United captain Gary Neville on their The Overlap episode, and with that came ins and outs of why Ten Hag might, now, be confident about luring him to Old Trafford.
In one snippet, the Tottenham striker said: “I’m not afraid to say that I want to be the best. I’m not afraid to say that I want to get on the level that Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi got onto.”
He continued: “That’s my ultimate goal, to be winning trophies season-in, season-out and scoring 50-60 goals season-in, season-out. If I give myself anything lower then when I get to the end of my career I might feel like I could’ve given a little bit more, scored a few more goals.”
While falling short of the 50 or 60 goals he craves would still render Kane successful – as highlighted by his 22 goals in 38 games this season – going without any trophy for club and country throughout his career would be something he might never forgive himself for. As such, he must look out for number one this summer as United strive to make him their number nine.
