Tottenham Hotspur are to hold fresh talks with two Bayern Munich officials on Monday over the German club’s interest in signing Harry Kane, with reports that youngster Mathys Tel could be thrown into the mix to sweeten the deal.
Kane has just one year left on his contract and doesn’t appear close to signing fresh terms in north London. As i reported earlier this week, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has already turned down a £60 million bid plus add-ons from Bayern, who look dead-set on landing England captain Kane.
Bayern are figuring out their next steps and The Telegraph report that technical director Marco Neppe and chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen will land in London at the start of the week to discuss the deal with Levy.
France youth international Tel, 18, could be used as a pawn in the negotiations. But he is not considered a direct replacement for centre-forward Kane, and is instead likened in playing style to Kylian Mbappe.
Sending their star striker to the Bundesliga is far more preferable than a rival Premier League club snapping up Kane this summer, as is letting the 30-year-old leave on a free transfer next season. Levy is said to have discussed a move with Paris Saint-Germain but Kane isn’t interested in playing in Ligue 1.
That leaves Bayern as the only realistic suitor this summer, unless Real Madrid pop up with a big offer as they seek to replace Karim Benzema. Bayern will know how hard Levy negotiates when it comes to player sales, but the fact the Spurs chairman is prepared to hold in-person talks is seen as progress in this potential transfer.
Tottenham are said to have already been interested in Tel this summer, although no official bid has been made. New manager Ange Postecoglou has already spent more than £110m on new players, including James Maddison from Leicester City.
Who is Mathys Tel?
Tel made his senior breakthrough at Rennes back in 2021 before moving to Bayern for an up-front fee of around £17.1m, with add-ons due, a year later. Last season he scored six goals in 28 appearances for Bayern across all competitions, five of which came in the Bundesliga.
He is a versatile forward who appears at his best when cutting in from the wing, which has driven the comparison with France superstar Mbappe. However, Tel sees himself as Bayern’s future No 9 and will be hoping for a more central role this term, should be stay.
In April Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel discussed the possibility of loaning Tel out, saying: “We see his qualities. He has explosiveness and very good finishing. He has to keep that up. For now, his role is to come off the bench. We’ll talk about his future [to loan or keep him] at a later date.”
At 18, Tel is the ideal impact sub for Bayern who already boast a wealth of attacking talent. But keeping him at the club alongside new arrival Kane, plus the existing presence of Thomas Muller, Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman, may seem unwise. While he no doubt has talent, Tuchel is trying to create a balanced squad and adding Kane into the mix would only reduce Tel’s playing time.
Tel’s agents tried to dispel rumours the player would leave Bayern this summer, claiming “he is on a mission” to be the first-choice striker at the German giants. A loan move could therefore be more feasible. That is, assuming Spurs don’t pick him up on a permanent transfer.
Where could Tel fit at Spurs?
Postecoglou played Maddison directly behind Kane, with Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski either side, in the friendly win over Lion City Sailors earlier this week. That forward set-up is likely to be the new boss’ style this coming season.
Were Tel to join Spurs then it’s unlikely he would fill the void left by Kane. At 18, even if he were an out-and-out centre-forward then relying on him to do Kane’s job would be a significant burden on young shoulders.
However, while he could certainly thrive in a dynamic offensive unit coming off the wing, there are hints that Tel could one-day play the Kane role.
Ex-Bayern manager Julian Nagelsmann, the man who signed Tel last summer, said the youngster could play “multiple positions” and “can hold up the ball well with his back to the goal”. If Postecoglou is planning to maintain Spurs’ familiar set-up of a focal centre-forward who drops deep to bring others into play then Tel, perhaps, could provide this outlet.
Of Tel’s 28 appearances last season he started just once, in a 2-2 draw with Stuttgart in which he scored. He played on the right of an attacking three sat behind Muller that day, and out wide is where he would probably fare best for Spurs this season, leaving the central duties to someone else.
That someone is unlikely to be Kane. The England striker who almost left Tottenham two years ago is about to get his wish now. All that remains is a game of who blinks first between Levy and Bayern’s officials.
After which, the job for Postecoglou is to find a true replacement.
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