Everyone knows that Harry Kane wants to move to Manchester City, and everyone also knows that Manchester City want to sign Harry Kane. So, why is the whole thing taking so long?
This whole circus reminds me of my junior school days. Remember those days when for several days a gang of boys are whispering on one side of the playground and a gang of girls are on the other doing exactly the same thing; Both discussing the speculation that a certain boy and a certain girl have declared an interest in one another. The word is that he is going to ask her out at the school disco at the end of the week. Everyone has an opinion about how he should approach her, what he should say first, when he will say it, what he might be wearing, whether she actually "went up town" last weekend with her besties to buy something special instead of going to her nan's? Heaven forbid, what if she says "No" when he asks? At times, it all becomes unbearable to think about anything else, it feels critical. And then at the big event when the DJ plays the last dance, finally they melt into one another's arms and EVERYONE breathes a sigh of relief!
These are the facts, Harry Kane gave an interview to Gary Neville on one of the Sky Sports Television platforms, before the end of the season, when he openly declared an admiration for Kevin de Bruyne of Manchester City. Everyone who follows football clearly understands that the modern-day professional footballer knows the power of his quotes in the public domain; it is the reason why so many live post match interviews are so bland. The script is clearly defined and so are the predictable responses. Football clubs are brands and comments made in front of the media have to be "on point!" No-one dares to upset the narrative and watch closely, as we saw with Brentford last Friday, a club learning to live with the high visibility of the Premier League machinery when players and managers give those supposedly "in the moment" reactions, the club media man is never far away. Kane had something to get off his chest and naively he blurted out that he wanted to win trophies, we heard him loud and clear, then he slid off to the Euros lead the National side in an almost perfect campaign, scored goals, most importantly one against the Germans (something that might have gained him a knighthood, had they won the thing) and was largely still the golden boy...until his car took him to Florida instead of Enfield for his football training.
Daniel Levy is a savvy operator, or likes to think he is. He has enough clout to delay big transfers; it's his signature move. The transfers of Dimitar Berbatov, Gareth Bale, and Luca Modric to name a few were agonisingly drawn out affairs that financially did not benefit the Spurs cause. But, that's his way of exerting control like a cantankarous primary school caretaker refusing to unlock the gates before the alloted time as the schoolchildren are getting soaked in a brutal downpour. Misplaced power is not clever and despite a few good seasons in the past, it is abundantly clear that Spurs right now are nowhere near being an elite club demanding respect, in the fashion of a similar project like say Leicester City. The team is has stars clearly, but is STILL unbalanced a little like like Arsenal down the road, and the thinking is not yet joining up. That said, Levy alone should not be made a scapegoat for this charade.
Top footballers (and the not so elite ones) delegate much of their dirty work to other people such as agents, social media agencies, financial advisors and so on. But it is in moments like these that one truly realises how ineffective some of these personnel are or more succinctly how poorly they advise their clients. Harry should have appointed the best representatives money can buy; people who know the terrain of dirty deal-making; it is a brutal business. His elementary mistake was to be surrounded by well-meaning but naive advisors, when he signed the long-term contract that Daniel Levy is holding him to...without that release clause. I genuinely believe that Daniel and Harry did have a pleasant conversation during which the player was given the impression that he could leave, if Spurs failed to land silverware. The problem is, that conversation wasn't put in writing, and is open to variable interpretation. Viewers of the ITV1 daytime show "Judge Rinder" will be familiar with the level of creativity, when it comes to interpreting a past conversation, and of course the biggest piece of advice Robert Rinder gives to all those, who are morally wronged, in every dispute, is "get it in writing!" Remember that Harry has been at Spurs for a long while and should have remembered that history might repeat itself, when he signed that contract. Modric, Bale and Berbatov, I am sure, are still scarred from their protracted experiences.
Up in Manchester, meanwhile, the other protagonists are also toying with Harry like a cat with a half dead bird. Surely this could have been avoided had they written the correct cheque at the first time of asking and allowed Harry to bed in, find Mrs Kane a nice house in Cheshire and enble the quest for further domination to begin with ernest. Look at Jaidon Sancho, he is so settled at Carrington with Manchester United that he and his new team-mates have probably already created a tik-tok account with 10 million followers whilst this nonsense rumbles on. Or, maybe, just maybe those supposedly deep pockets are not so deep after all! Maybe, quite simply they cannot afford the fee, unless they offload a few valuable palyers themselves. Are they playing the double-bluff? If so, that back-fired when they lost to Spurs last weekend.
This business of a false number 9, for a team like City, does not wash, for me. Sergio Aguero was a pivotal player for them, and should have played a greater part in that Champions League final back in May. That crucial goal against QPR that clinched that first title, is worth a billion pounds to Manchester City. Kevin Keegan and Newcastle were so so close and faltered at the last hurdle, never to reach those heights again. If Harry is the best option available, and most of us believe that he is. Not only will he improve his own game, he could push them to that immortal place they desperately crave; lifting the Champions League trophy.
For the sake of the fans who will pay significant money for the privilege of their live football fix, it's time to move on with the football story, get the damn thing done and allow Spurs and City fans to know their fate; and know whether Harry will wear their colours or not. With so much uncertainty in the world, let's get this deal done one way or the other so this blogger and the rolling news channels can move on. Harry! What about PSG? Keep your options open kid, Messi can pick a pass...just putting it out there.
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