Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has confirmed Harry Kane’s move to Bayern Munich is “imminent” after the clubs agreed a fee that could rise to £120million.
Bayern have tracked the England captain all summer and a number of bids were turned down, but a breakthrough was reached on Wednesday night.
It left the ball in Kane’s court and he decided on Thursday to leave his boyhood club and join the Bundesliga champions, who will pay an initial £100m for the forward with add-ons able to potentially take the transfer up to an overall fee of £120m, the PA news agency understands.
Postecoglou on #HarryKane: "He's been a hero to the supporters and will continue to be. Him going will not change my vision of what I will bring for this football club. We will try to build a team that plays football that will hopefully excite our fans and bring success." #thfc
— George Sessions (@GeorgeSessions) August 11, 2023
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Reports on Friday morning initially suggested Spurs had refused to give Kane permission to travel to Germany, but they were squashed by Tottenham and he is set to fly out on Friday afternoon and will complete a medical once he lands in Munich.
Postecoglou, speaking ahead of Sunday’s trip to Brentford, confirmed: “Fair to say I don’t have a blow by blow account but my understanding is it has progressed to the point where it looks like it will happen.
“From that perspective, at least it gives us some clarity and we move forward without Harry.
“From my perspective it is just about understanding where we are at and the information I have at the moment is the deal is imminent but like with all these things, you leave yourself some leeway.
“But moving forward and training today preparing for Brentford, we are doing it without Harry.
“It is best Harry speaks for himself in terms of the decision but no doubt he is one of the greats of this football club and that never changes.
“I am only new in the building but fairly evident Harry Kane will always be one of the greats for this football club.”
🗣️ Thomas Tuchel on the potential signing of Harry Kane: "We are working on it intensely, that much I can confirm. As of right now, no agreement has been reached, and when no agreement has been reached, then a coach will not comment on it, because it is not his player." pic.twitter.com/GWhhTbwiGX
— FC Bayern Munich (@FCBayernEN) August 11, 2023
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Kane is unlikely to be signed in time to feature in Bayern’s DFL-Super Cup match with RB Leipzig on Saturday night.
However, with the clash taking place at Bayern’s Allianz Arena home, England captain Kane could well be unveiled to supporters before kick-off.
This is not the first summer where Kane’s future has dominated headlines after Manchester City had a failed pursuit in 2021.
Kane sat out the first match of that season – coincidentally against City – but Pep Guardiola’s side never got close to agreeing a fee with Tottenham for the forward.
With Kane into the last 12 months of his contract at Spurs this summer, speculation over his future this time always felt more significant.
Bayern saw bids reportedly turned down in June and July but made their intentions clear, with club officials in honorary president Uli Hoeness and president Herbert Hainer speaking openly in the media about Kane’s desire to join the Bundesliga champions.
A third bid was submitted last Friday and a new twist occurred when Spurs spent all weekend deliberating before chairman Daniel Levy rejected the offer on Monday.
With noises coming out that Kane, who scored four goals in a friendly win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Sunday, had enjoyed working with new Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou, confidence started to grow that he could spend the season with his boyhood team.
Bayern’s latest bid proved enough for an agreement to be reached and, after Kane took his time to weigh up the decision, he decided it was right to end his 19-year stay at Spurs.
It means Kane’s pursuit of Alan Shearer’s Premier League goal-scoring record will go on pause, with the Tottenham forward still 47 goals off equalling Shearer’s tally of 260.
He will leave N17 as the club’s leading marksman after he surpassed Jimmy Greaves’ 266-goal record in February with the winner against Manchester City.
Kane will also get the chance to fulfil his career-long ambition of winning trophies at Bayern, while remaining in the Champions League after spending only one of the last three campaigns in Europe’s elite competition.
Back at Spurs, Postecoglou, who only took over in June, will be tasked with filling a huge void.
