Gary Neville has told Tottenham that they must risk losing Harry Kane for free by not selling the England captain this summer and waiting until June 2024 when his contract expires.
Kane is subject to interest from Manchester United at present, with the 29-year-old also a target for Bayern Munich in a move which could cost up to £100 million. However, in Tottenham's current state of needing a new manager and director of football this summer, it would be a major risk to lose their star striker as well.
That is the view of Neville, who spoke about the situation at Spurs and their need to hold onto Kane whatever the cost while on Sky Sports commentary duty at Anfield on Sunday. "When you think about this season for Spurs, and how it's going to end, I don't think Tottenham can let Harry Kane go in the summer," said the former United full-back.
"They are going to have to let him wind down his contract. They will need to build around him next season with a new manager. If he leaves in the summer, and a new manager comes in, will he really want to take the job if he's a big name without Kane there?
"They may just have to swallow the fact that they're not going to get a fee for him or try to encourage him to stay during that season. The new manager that comes in is going to want to keep the pair of Kane and Son Heung-min together."
As things stand, Spurs are set to be without a captain for next season too, with Hugo Lloris set to depart the club. It is a role which appeared destined to be Kane's one day, but the speculation regarding his future leaves the side in a state of flux ahead of the summer.
Having played together for a number of years, Kane is believed to have a good relationship with current interim manager Ryan Mason and could be convinced by the former Spurs academy product to stick around. However, with chairman Daniel Levy risking losing his prize asset for free, it could be out of Kane and Mason's hands.
Julian Nagelsmann is the favourite to take over as manager at present, but the German is reported to have requested more control over transfers than has previously been afforded to managers in north London. The future of Kane could be a big factor in whether the former Bayern boss joins the club, with a world class asset potentially heading out of the door.
There is also the consideration of Kane's 30th birthday this summer, which will surely serve as a reminder of his lack of trophies at this point in his career. A move to United or Bayern would provide a significant chance of providing a trophy-laden final few years of playing at the top level.
Kane holds goalscoring records at club and international level having scored 275 times in 432 appearances for Spurs, with 55 in 82 appearances in an England shirt.
