A European powerhouse have made first contact with Tottenham striker Harry Kane and could repeat a Liverpool transfer trick, while Lionel Messi will leave PSG after this season and his next club has been hinted – both in Wednesday’s Transfer Gossip.
EURO GIANT CONTACT HARRY KANE
Harry Kane came as close as he’s ever been to leaving Tottenham in 2021. Man City tabled multiple bids worth over £100m, though Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was in no mood to sell his best player.
Kane remained at Spurs with Man City going on to sign Erling Haaland a year later. All in all, it appears Kane’s non-move worked out best for both clubs.
Indeed, Tottenham are once again a club on the rise under Antonio Conte and Kane remains his most important player.
However, his contract status is beginning to spark speculation he might be on the move.
Kane’s current deal expires in 2024. Fabrizio Romano reported the striker is happy in north London and stressed talk of an audacious swap deal involving Chelsea and Romelu Lukaku was false.
He confirmed Bayern Munich are strong admirers of Kane, though reported talks between the two clubs haven’t taken place. Bayern have pushed their search for a replacement for Robert Lewandowski back to 2023 and Kane is believed to be their primary target.
But according to German outlet Kicker, contact has been made between Bayern and Kane.
They state ‘initial contact’ has been made with Kane’s camp. The 29-year-old remains one of Bayern’s ‘top candidates’ to succeed Lewandowski and the Sun outline how they’ll go about signing him.
Sadio Mane transfer the blueprint?
They report Bayern could either bide their time and attempt to sign Kane as a free agent when his contract runs out in 2024.
If they took that route, they’d be able to forge a pre-contract agreement with Kane in January, 2024. However, that would be reliant on Kane refusing to sign an extension at Spurs.
Alternatively, they could walk the same path they took when prising Sadio Mane out of Liverpool.
Bayern were able to sign Mane for a modest £35m (including add-ons). The fee was so low due to Mane only having one year left on his deal at the time.
Liverpool were at a crossroads, knowing Mane could walk for free a year later if a new deal weren’t signed. The Sun suggest Bayern could attempt to repeat that process regarding Kane next summer.
Of course, if Kane were to pen fresh terms at Tottenham, Bayern’s hopes would crumble.
LIONEL MESSI ON THE MOVE?
Lionel Messi will not stay for the third optional year at PSG and who he’ll join next has been hinted in a report.
The Argentina icon, 35, left Barcelona in the summer of 2021 at the height of the club’s financial meltdown.
Messi did not want to leave, nor did Barcelona want to sell him. Indeed, a contract extension had been signed, though LaLiga refused to ratify the deal given the state of Barcelona’s finances.
That forced Messi to seek pastures new and he landed in Paris to form a fearsome front three with Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
Messi underwhelmed in his first season away from Barca, though has shown glimpses of his best at the second time of asking. After 11 games in all competitions this season his goals contributions tally stands at 14.
However, according to the Daily Star, Messi’s time in Paris is coming to a close.
His deal expires in 2023, though there is an option for an extra 12 months. Citing the Spanish press, it’s claimed Messi ‘is not going to renew his contract’ and that development is now ‘clear’.
The Star cite reports linking Messi with a return to Barcelona and if financially viable, a return to Catalonia looks most likely.
It had been claimed he wanted to see out his contract at PSG before returning to Barcelona. However, given the third year in Paris is optional, Messi may be back in Spain as early as next summer.
NEWCASTLE BEAT BARCELONA TO WONDERKID
Newcastle have beaten a host of European sides to the signature of an Australian sensation and the bargain fee he’ll sign for has emerged.
Sky Sports reported Newcastle were closing in on 18-year-old Australia international Garang Kuol on Tuesday.
The Central Coast Mariners sensation can operate at striker or on either flank. He became the Socceroos’ sixth-youngest player ever when debuting against New Zealand on Sunday.
Sky reported Newcastle had fended off competition from Celtic and Borussia Dortmund in the coup. The Daily Mail shed further details on the move, claiming Barcelona and Stuttgart have been cast aside too.
Garang Kuol will reportedly arrive in the UK today (Wednesday) to complete his move. However, he will not be officially registered until January.
He’ll cost just £300,000 to sign and is expected to go straight out on loan once his move is confirmed in January.
Kuol caught the eye in the A-League at the back end of last season. He notched four goals in just 145 minutes of action for the Mariners.