Tottenham don’t expect Harry Kane to leave – but must be ready to act if he does, warns Nuno Espirito Santo
Nuno Espirito Santo says Tottenham do not expect Harry Kane to leave the club before the end of the month but must be “ready to act” in the event he does.
The England captain was left out of the squad as Spurs got the Nuno era off to a perfect start with a 1-0 win over Kane’s suitors Manchester City.
Kane was thought to have been at the stadium to witness yesterday’s upset and the returning supporters chanted “are you watching Harry Kane?” as their side saw out a memorable victory over the champions.
Kane is hoping City up their interest this week with a bid that would persuade Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to come to the table, although the London club have maintained throughout the summer that he will not be sold before the August 31 transfer deadline.
“The decision [to leave out Harry] was made on Saturday, the day we prepared for the match,” Nuno said. “We have to make decisions, it’s our job.
“Harry is [training] with us, he worked on Sunday morning and he’s getting ready to help the team. We don’t expect [something to happen before the transfer deadline but] we have to be ready to act if necessary because until the 31st anything can happen in football.”
Asked if Spurs were working to sign replacements if Kane is sold for a huge sum, Nuno added: “We have our squad, we have our Spurs players.
“We have to commit them but we have to know that 31st of August is sometimes not in your hands. All the managers in the Premier League have the same feeling that I have – trying to finish the window and settle down.”
Nuno said before the match that he wanted his new side to be, above all, “solid” and they were, containing the threat of the likes of Raheem Sterling and Jack Grealish and hitting City with a series of quick counter-attacks.
Heung-min Son deservedly fired Spurs ahead in the 55th-minute with a superb strike and Steven Bergwijn should really have added a second.