Real Madrid have pulled out of the race to sign Harry Kane scuppering Daniel Levy’s plans to auction his prize asset to the highest bidder... and leaving the field open for Manchester United.
Outstanding payments on Spurs’ new £1billion stadium mean they could suffer the effects of the current lockdown more than any other Premier League club.
And after the England captain suggested that it might be time to leave Spurs to improve his chances of winning trophies, Levy has opened up to the possibility of selling the England captain this summer.
Twice in the last decade Madrid have bought from Spurs in similar circumstances. In 2012 Tottenham rejected United’s advances for Croatian midfielder Luka Modric, selling him instead to Real Madrid for £30milion.
At the time Levy announced a commercial partnership with the Spanish club and said: ‘Luka has been a terrific player for us and, while we preferred not to part with him, we are pleased that it is to Real Madrid.’
In 2013 Gareth Bale was sold to Real Madrid for a then record fee for the Spanish club of £85m.
Again there had been interest from United with a strong late push from David Moyes but Tottenham had preferred to sell to Spain instead of to a direct rival.
Madrid vying for Kane’s signature this summer would have boosted Tottenham’s chances of coming close to their £200m starting valuation for the player who will be 27 this July. But The Mail On Sunday understands Madrid have no intention of joining the race for Kane because the anticipated financial effects of La Liga’s own lockdown have left them planning a summer without a major signing.
Real Madrid players announced a 10 per cent pay cut for the rest of the season this month and they have agreed to make that 20 per cent if the season cannot be completed.
This week the prospect of that scenario increased when the Spanish Football Federation announced their plan for deciding which teams qualify for Europe if the season cannot be finished.
La Liga president Javier Tebas has said the Spanish league will suffer losses of almost £1bn if this season’s fixtures cannot be played. Even playing out the rest of the games without spectators would still leave the competition with a £270m loss.