Erik ten Hag will be delighted after Jamie Carragher explained why Manchester United are the most likely club to sign a top striker this summer.
Ten Hag’s current centre-forward options are Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Wout Weghorst. But the position is likely to undergo some major changes at the end of the season.
Martial will probably be sold as Ten Hag, like his managerial predecessors, is unable to rely on him to play regularly. Rashford has been in sensational form this term, though he prefers to operate out wide on the left flank.
Weghorst, meanwhile, has only moved to Old Trafford on loan from Burnley. There is a chance the deal will be made permanent, but it would make more sense if Man Utd captured a world-class goalscorer instead.
Harry Kane, Victor Osimhen and Tammy Abraham are three options being looked at by Ten Hag. And Carragher has now given his verdict on one of them moving to Man Utd.
The former Liverpool defender admits Man Utd are the best-placed team to sign Kane from Tottenham, despite interest from Bayern Munich.
However, Carragher did also cast doubt over whether Kane is worth that huge £100million price tag due to his age.
“Tottenham will always be there or thereabouts in terms of qualifying for the Champions League but will he win trophies? No,” Carragher said on CBS Sports (via Manchester Evening News). “If you’re asking me if he should leave to join a team to win a domestic cup or stay at Tottenham I think I would stay. But this is a guy who should be going deep in the Champions League every year, he’s that good.
Attacker has few options – but Man Utd offer escape route
“Where does he go? That’s the big question. There’s not too many clubs there right now for him. I think the only place he can go realistically is Manchester United. I don’t want to see him there for obvious reasons but Man City have [Erling] Haaland, Liverpool have [Darwin] Nunez, he can’t go to Arsenal or Chelsea.
“He could go abroad but he will want that Premier League goal. He will be the top goalscorer if he stays in the Premier League and that is a pretty special achievement. So if he stays in England, the only big team he can go to is Man Utd. But will they spend £100m for a guy who is nearly 30?”
It is understood that if Kane decides to leave Spurs, club chairman Daniel Levy would much rather negotiate with foreign clubs than Man Utd. The last thing he wants to do is improve a direct Premier League rival.
This means the valuations given to Man Utd and Bayern will probably vary. While Man Utd will be told to spend upwards of £100m on the England skipper, Bayern will be able to get him for less than this.
In January, Kane spoke about his contract, which expires in June 2024. He said he expects talks over a renewal to begin in the next few months.
At that point, Spurs were still in competitions such as the FA Cup and Champions League. They have since been knocked out of them though. So it will be interesting to see whether this affects Kane’s decision on his future.
