Bayern Munich appear to be actively using press play to try and land Harry Kane. Then president Daniel Levy went on vacation.
Reports that Munich has set a deadline for Kane’s signing have been circulating in recent days. “Tottenham have until midnight tonight (local time) to decide whether to sell Harry Kane to Munich,” said James Burt, a reporter for the Telegraph. If no deal is agreed, Kane will play out the final year of his contract at Tottenham and leave on a free next summer,” he reported.
“Munich will turn to other targets if Tottenham do not allow Kane to move on. All parties want Kane’s future to be decided quickly.”
Fabrizio Romano, a journalist who works for the UK’s The Guardian and is known as an expert on the European transfer market, also wrote on social media on Thursday, “The deadline for a Kane deal is approaching. Sources close to the negotiations say the deadline for a Kane deal is the fifth. All parties are waiting for Levy’s decision.”
Munich, who have been actively pursuing Kane, traveled to London last week in hopes of making a breakthrough in negotiations. Munich CEO Jan-Christian Dresden and technical director Marco Neppe traveled with the club’s Asia tour to Japan and Singapore to meet with Levy.
A delegation of negotiators, led by Dresden and Nepe, traveled to London, England, to meet with Levy in person. The tug-of-war between Tottenham and Munich over Kane looked like it was finally coming to a conclusion, but the face-to-face negotiations failed to close the gap on the transfer fee.
Munich were never willing to match Spurs’ asking price. After talk of a deadline emerged, Munich made a third offer to Spurs.
Dan Kilpatrick, who covers Tottenham for the UK’s Evening Standard, reported on Friday that “Munich are understood to have submitted a final offer for Kane. They have demanded a response from Tottenham by Friday. According to reports from the German side, the offer is in the region of 100 million euros ($143.9 million) with a bonus clause.”
“Munich believe the improved offer is a reasonable final offer,” said Sky Sports in the UK. If Tottenham accept the offer, a move for Kane would be swift,” and “Kane would earn €12.75 million a year for five years at Munich,” according to Sky Sports.
100 million euros would be the highest transfer fee in the history of the German Bundesliga. It’s also not far off Tottenham’s asking price of €115.8 million for Kane. Paying €100 million for a player with one year left on his contract was a bold move for Munich.
In response, the British public broadcaster ‘BBC’ reported on May 5 that “Munich have told Tottenham they want to decide by the end of Friday whether they are ready to sell Kane. The deadline is a sign of Munich’s frustration with the situation, but it is unclear if they will give up if an agreement is not reached.”
“Tottenham have refused to comment (on the transfer speculation). With Kane unwilling to extend his contract, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy’s last chance to pocket a transfer fee is effectively over if he chooses to stay. Munich officials met with Levy earlier this week but failed to reach an agreement. The transfer window closes on September 1 and the two clubs want to resolve it before the start of the season.”
Predictably, Levy was never going to get his way. It’s now Friday, local time, and there’s still no word on how Levy feels about Munich’s final offer. Time has passed, and the deadline set by Munich has been met.
There are two possible reasons for Munich’s deadline strategy. First, the start of the 2023-24 season is just around the corner. Munich kicks off the season with the DFL-Supercup against RB Leipzig on the 13th. That’s about a week away.
It’s hard to get a player in once the season starts, so Munich may have set the deadline to get a player in quickly.
Second, it’s a strategy to put pressure on Tottenham. Currently, Kane is widely expected to remain at Spurs if a deal is not finalized by the start of the 2023-24 English Premier League (EPL) season against Brentford. “Kane is expected to leave Tottenham this summer if the club fail to reach an agreement with Munich before the start of the season, which is less than two weeks away,” the Evening Standard reported on Kane’s current position. 메이저놀이터
Tottenham would also need time to find a replacement after selling Kane. That’s why the Bavarians have set up a deadline to put pressure on Spurs, forcing Levy to make a decision quickly.
Munich’s deadline day strategy didn’t work, and suddenly there’s talk that there shouldn’t have been a deadline at all. Toby Alttscheppl, a reporter for Germany’s Sport Bild who is well versed in Munich news, tweeted on Friday evening, “Munich’s Kane saga continues. Until now, everyone thought the deadline for Kane was Friday night. According to our information, negotiations with Tottenham for Kane have been postponed,” claiming that there was no deadline.
“There is still no agreement. But what is clear is that there is no sign of Kane re-signing for Spurs. Kane has made it clear that he wants a decision no later than 13 days before the EPL opener against Brentford.” Another Munich source, German Sky Sports journalist Florian Plettenberg, said: “There is no deadline. Munich will wait for an answer by the end of the week.”
The Bavarians also appear to have taken a step back as they don’t have an obvious replacement for Kane. The strikers currently on the market – Romelu Lukaku, Dusan Blagojevich, Gonzalo Higuain, and Radja Nainggolan – are clearly good options.
However, compared to Kane, he’s underrated. There is no other player on the market who can fill the void left by Robert Lewandowski. It’s hard for Munich to give up on Kane so easily.
Levy plans to capitalize on Munich’s predicament 120%. “Levy deliberately passed on Munich’s ultimatum,” Sport Bild reported on Friday evening. But that’s not all. Levy will go on a two-week vacation with his family to Miami, USA.”
While the vacation won’t interrupt Levy’s work, it’s enough to send a message that he’s going to ignore Munich’s ultimatum at this point. The outlet added: “The message behind this is clear. Levy, who is known in football as a tough negotiator, wants to show that he wants more money. The speculation is that Levy ignored Munich’s offer.”
In the end, the Kane transfer saga is likely to continue until the EPL kicks off. The only variable is Kane’s stance. So far, the player hasn’t taken a direct stance. It’s a far cry from the Manchester City transfer saga of 2021. He’s kept quiet and focused on the team.
However, it has been reported in German media that Kane’s wife, Katie Goodland, has traveled to Munich, Germany, to look for a new home and an international school for their children. Kane’s desire to win a trophy was indirectly communicated.
“Kane is very attached to Tottenham,” said Sport Bild. It is important for him that Tottenham get the right transfer fee. However, if Levy continues to remain aloof, it threatens to damage his relationship with the club. “Kane will move to Munich on a free transfer when his contract expires next summer,” he said, cautiously predicting that Kane’s stance could now change.
The news that Kane only wants to move to Munich has been confirmed by multiple sources. However, Kane has not yet reacted to Tottenham’s decision or publicly changed his mind about not pursuing a move.
However, with the Bavarians being so aggressive in their pursuit, he could suddenly change his mind. For Tottenham, it’s not easy to hold on to a player with a year left on his contract.
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