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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
PA Media

Harry Kane joins Bayern Munich and leaves door open for Spurs return

Harry Kane has left the door open for a return to Tottenham after completing his £100m move to Bayern Munich. The England captain travelled to Germany on Friday for a medical and the Bundesliga champions confirmed on Saturday he had signed a deal lasting until June 2027 and would wear the No 9 shirt.

“It’s not a goodbye because you never know how things pan out in the future, but it’s a thank you and I’ll see you soon,” Kane posted on his social media accounts.

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The 30-year-old told Bayern’s website he hoped to play some part in Bayern’s DFB Super Cup match with RB Leipzig on Saturday night as he looks to win the first trophy of his career.

“I’m very happy to be a part of FC Bayern now,” Kane said. “Bayern is one of the biggest clubs in the world, and I’ve always said that I want to compete and prove myself at the highest level during my career. This club is defined by its winning mentality – it feels very good to be here.”

Shortly before the deal was officially confirmed, Kane posted a message on his social media accounts in which he said: “I wanted to be the first to tell you Tottenham fans that I’ll be leaving the club today. Obviously a lot of emotions going through me right now; sad to be leaving the club I’ve spent nearly 20 years of my life at, from 11-year-old boy to a 30-year-old man now.

“There’s been so many great moments and special memories, memories that I will cherish forever. I felt like it was the time to leave. I didn’t want to go into the season with a lot of unresolved future talk.

“I think it’s important for the new manager and the players to concentrate on trying to get Tottenham back to around the top of the table and fighting for trophies so I wish Ange [Postecoglou] and all the boys all the very best of luck. I’ll be watching from a fan point of view now and really hope the team can be successful.”

Postecoglou had revealed on Friday that Kane’s move was “imminent” after a breakthrough in negotiations between the clubs was reached on Wednesday night. It left the ball in Kane’s court and he decided on Thursday to leave his boyhood club for Bayern, who will pay an initial £100m with add-ons potentially taking the deal up to an overall fee of £120m.

Kane, who was out of contract next summer, leaves Tottenham having scored 280 goals to become the club’s all-time leading goalscorer, but without a trophy. Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, told the club’s website: “We sought over a long period of time to engage Harry and his representatives in several forms of contract extension, both short and long term.

“Harry was clear, however, that he wanted a fresh challenge and would not be signing a new contract this summer. We have reluctantly, therefore, agreed to his transfer. We have seen a product of our academy system become one of the best players to ever pull on a Spurs shirt and become one of world football’s elite strikers. It has been a truly remarkable journey.”

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust criticised Levy and his fellow board members. “We have lost a generational talent who, by his own words, only wanted to see the club progress,” it said. “The lack of a coherent and consistent football strategy from the board has seen significant on-field regression since 2019, leading to ‘One of Our Own’ feeling he had no viable option but to leave.”

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