For Harry Kane, it has been an unforgettable international break, but his return to Tottenham will quickly bring him back down to earth. Decision time is rapidly approaching for the 29-year-old.
Kane‘s own contribution to the cause at his club rarely dips and he’s enjoyed another successful season, but this summer has to be the moment he decides whether to be a one-club man for good, with all the risk of ending his career without a trophy that brings, or if he walks away as Tottenham’s record goalscorer, searching for greater glories rather than a club who can’t give him what he desires.
Kane will turn 30 in July and the clock really is ticking now. This will be another season without silverware for a player who deserves to end his career with medals to look back on.
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If he stays at Tottenham he will cement his status as a legend and break Alan Shearer’s Premier League scoring record while staying at his boyhood club. It’s a good story, but if he does that individual honours might be all he ends up with. Perhaps that will be enough for Kane. The temptation of one big trophy with Spurs overweighing that desire to break the relationship.
But since the departure of Mauricio Pochettino, Tottenham have sought to maximise the peak years of Kane with short-term, win-now appointments, but the spells of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte have been a disaster. They've been going backwards.
The only salvation remaining this season is to secure a fourth-place finish and another campaign in the Champions League. Blow that and it could almost certainly be the end for Kane. The competition for those four places is fierce and Newcastle will be hanging around in that battle for the foreseeable future.
Who the next manager is might also weigh on Kane's mind. A Pochettino return is a possibility. Appointing Julian Nagelsmann would be a significant statement of intent. But the decision to give Conte's assistant, Cristian Stellini, the role of caretaker boss has raised eyebrows. This does feel like a club that has lost its way.
That's why Kane's decision this summer is so vital. He's already missed one chance to move away in 2021, when Manchester City were priced out of a move. Kane did try and force the hand of his club then, but there was also a sense he didn't do enough. When it's Daniel Levy you're dealing with, you have to be ruthless.
The two seasons at Tottenham since then have produced another 50 goals and counting, but they've not even come close to a trophy. There must be some envy when Kane glances at the Etihad and what Erling Haaland is doing in a role initially earmarked for him.
If he lets this summer pass by without a move then it might be his last chance. Kane has more power now, with just a year remaining on his contract, and if he wants out this summer he will have to force it. Erik ten Hag wants him at Manchester United, but they have stung by negotiating with Levy before.
Sir Alex Ferguson once famously said that trying to do a deal with Levy was "more painful than my hip replacement". There is talk of a £100million fee, but that feels monstrous for a player who turns 30 in the summer and is available for nothing in 12 months.
The problem for Kane is that waiting a year doesn't feel realistic. United will move on if he can't extricate himself from Tottenham this summer. Napoli hotshot Victor Osimhen is another potential target and Ten Hag is a fan of Benfica striker Goncalo Ramos.
If Kane waits to see how Tottenham fare next season, then his options in 2024 will be limited. City and United will have signed their new strikers and Chelsea are likely to push for a forward as well this summer. Moving to Stamford Bridge would be disastrous for Kane's relationship with Tottenham fans.
Perhaps Newcastle will offer a route to trophies by the summer of 2024, but that feels unlikely. Arsenal is clearly a non-starter. It might be that his only options in a year's time are abroad, which would put his chances of breaking the Premier League record in jeopardy.
It really does feel like this summer is make or break for Kane. The freedom he might have in 12 months' time doesn't marry up with the list of clubs who want him, but need a striker here and now.
If his decision is to finally move on and try and win trophies elsewhere, he has to do his bit to make a move happen this summer. United will be waiting.
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