Jamie Carragher has questioned Manchester City’s pursuit of Harry Kane, asking why they haven’t met Tottenham’s valuations of the striker.
The Harry Kane saga rumbles on; there’s no end in sight, as nothing seems to move forward. Manchester City have been chasing the Tottenham star all summer, but Daniel Levy seems to have no interest in selling his main man. However, questions have been asked over Pep Guardiola’s club and their intentions over the move.
Kane has seemingly gone to lengths to express his desire to move away. His first revelation came at the end of last season during an interview with Gary Neville. Tottenham have since rejected one offer of £100 million-plus a player for the striker, and City are yet to come up with another sizeable offer.
The England captain’s late return to training due to extended holidays and quarantine led to suggestions that he might be trying to force a transfer, but he has since come back to first-team training. However, the striker has not been involved in the two competitive games the north Londoners have played.
Levy has made his stance clear, demanding over £150 million for his star striker. Man City have reportedly planning to submit another offer worth £127 million since, but Spurs remain unmoved. They want their valuation met even to have a meaningful discussion over a transfer.
While many have questioned Spurs’ intent to refuse a move, Jamie Carragher has asked why Manchester City haven’t been able to meet his value? City are usually efficient in bringing their primary targets without problems, as Carragher points out in his column in The Telegraph.
Carragher says, “If I was Kane, I would be as disappointed in Sheikh Mansour as Levy, and ask myself, ‘why haven’t they matched my market value?’ Privately, he might even be wondering how far City are really prepared to go to get him. As the supposed number one summer target, he should already have been paraded in his City shirt.
“If City were to bid that much and it was still refused, the situation would be viewed differently. Kane’s argument about being retained against his and Spurs’ best interests would carry more weight. As things stand, there is nothing unreasonable about Levy’s stance as he correctly calculates Kane’s price and the resources of the club chasing him.
“Anything less than £150 million for the England captain is going to be met with an instant rebuke. No matter how much understanding there is for Kane as he seeks to fulfil his trophy-winning ambitions under Pep Guardiola, no one in football would expect Tottenham to sell him for less. They have a business to protect. There is no room for sentiment.”
Those words from Carragher make plenty of sense, as Manchester City moved swiftly to sign Jack Grealish from Aston Villa by paying his valuation of £100 million, no questions asked. However, they are playing a risky game with Kane and might not sign their primary target as the transfer deadline looms.