Spurs: 'Keeping Kane is not a goal, it's a priority'

Transfer window: Man Utd are making progress in attempts to sign the midfielder Eduardo Camavinga from Rennes

Mon, 05 Jul, 2021 - 11:40

Fabrizio Romano and agencies

Tottenham want Harry Kane to stay at the club, their managing director of football, Fabio Paratici, has said.

Kane has told the club he wants a transfer and Manchester City have bid for the striker, who has scored three goals to help England to the semi-finals of Euro 2020. He has a contact to 2024.

“Keeping him is not just my goal, it’s our goal as a club,” Paratici, who joined Tottenham last month after leaving Juventus, told Sky in Italy.

“I can’t wait to watch him play live. I’ve been really lucky in the past years because I’ve watched a lot of top players and strikers, like Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez, Álvaro Morata, Gonzalo Higuaín, and many more which now I forgot about.

“Right now, he’s one of the best strikers in the world. He’s a complete player, really special. His physique is that of a real No 9, a true poacher, but he also has an incredibly refined technique.

“He is able to shoot with both feet and also provides many assists – very few people notice this, because he scores so many goals. He’s a team player, but he’s a finisher at the same time, so really I believe he is among the top three in the world.

“I haven’t heard from him yet because I don’t want to bother the players who are busy at the Euros; it doesn’t seem fair to me. They’re focused on their own goals with their national teams.”

Tottenham, under a new manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, host City in their opening game of the 2021-22 season on Sunday 15 August. The chairman, Daniel Levy, said last month that although he shared Kane’s frustration over a lack of trophies he would do what is right for the club in the transfer market.

“There is a market out there,” he said. “What we want and what somebody else wants isn’t always possible to achieve. We’ll do whatever is right for the club.”

Meanwhile Manchester United are making progress in attempts to sign the midfielder Eduardo Camavinga from Rennes. The 18-year-old is a France international with three caps but went to the Under-21 European Championship rather than Euro 2020.

Rennes are open to selling Camavinga for about €30m because they could otherwise lose him for nothing next summer, when his contract is due to expire. He has been a long-term target for United and other clubs, notably Paris Saint-Germain, are also interested.

Camavinga, who has been selected for the Tokyo Olympics, last August became – at 17 years, nine months and 17 days – the youngest player called into a France senior squad since 1932. He came on against Croatia the following month, becoming their youngest debutant since 1914, according to Opta.

A product of the Rennes academy, he made his first-team debut in 2019 at 16 and has played 67 Ligue 1 games for the club.

Last week, United confirmed they had agreed to sign the England winger Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund. The club intend to further strengthen Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s squad provided deals reflect the economic climate, and Camavinga appears to fit that bracket.

Meanwhile United would consider sending 30-year-old Spain goalkeeper David de Gea out on loan this summer, say reports.

*Guardian/agencies