Real Madrid withdrew after Tottenham’s “asking too much” demand, which probably caused a major transfer to fail.

Harry Kane left Tottenham Hotspur after 19 years to sign with Bayern Munich during the most recent transfer window. The 30-year-old was connected to Real Madrid and a couple Premier League teams prior to coming to Germany.

 

Kane would have been a perfect fit for the La Liga team, according to former Tottenham striker Fernando Llorente, who spoke with AS.

The Spaniard announced his retirement earlier this year. He had stints at a number of clubs in the past, including Athletic, Juventus, Swansea City, Spurs, and Napoli.

In advance of the Champions League match, AS spoke with Llorente to give a preview of the European match between Carlo Ancelotti’s team and the Serie A winners.

When questioned about Kane, the 38-year-old stated, “He would have been ideal,” adding that Los Blancos are in need of a top-tier attacker. For Real Madrid, he was the ideal addition.

 

The England international was a teammate of the former Swansea player throughout his two years at Tottenham from 2017 to 2019. He feels Spurs, under the leadership of Daniel Levy, their chairman, made demands that Real Madrid withdrew from a potential trade for Kane.

“He’s outstanding. Given his age, Madrid might have felt that Tottenham was asking for too much money, but having seen Tottenham up close and knowing what he is capable of, I was confident in his performance. He would have been Madrid’s ideal striker.

According to reports, Bayern gave Tottenham €100 million, and it has paid off as Kane has already scored 22 goals and provided seven assists this season.

In related development:

Pete O’Rourke column: West Ham eyes a striker swoop, Arsenal targets two strikers, and a major update on Liverpool accepting Diaz’s offer

Bringing you exclusive transfer and contract news along with updates from the Premier League, EFL, Scottish Premiership, and other leagues is my biweekly column, which is now in its most recent issue.

WEST HAM

The Irons have always admired Dominic Solanke, a forward for Bournemouth, and are looking for a new forward before the new year.

Although West Ham is still keeping an eye on the England international’s circumstances, I’ve been informed that the Cherries do not intend to let him go in January.

Sources claim that David Moyes’ team would likely receive the same response during the mid-season window as they did when they made overtures in the summer that were met with resistance.

 

According to what I’ve been told, Bournemouth views Solanke as essential to their prospects of surviving in the Premier League and maybe the difference between promotion and relegation.

The striker would advocate for a move elsewhere if the Championship were to drop, even though he recently signed a contract that would expire in June 2027.

However, Bournemouth would be in a strong position to demand a hefty amount for their star forward if they were to stay in the top tier.

According to sources, he might fetch more than £40 million. If his current form holds, many top-half clubs may enter the race.

Meanwhile, other rumours claim that Michail Antonio may miss months of time due to an injury sustained while travelling abroad for Jamaica’s national team.

If the worst is true—Gianluca Scamacca leaving without a replacement in the summer window—it would be a major blow.

David Moyes is eager to bring in a striker in January, and Hugo Ekitike of Paris Saint-Germain is a striker who would be a good substitute for Solanke.

The France Under-20 international, who nearly moved to England in the summer, might be persuaded to join the Premier League.

Luis Enrique, the manager of PSG, has entirely shut him out and isn’t giving him a chance to play.

Newcastle is reportedly interested in the 21-year-old as well, who is probably

LIVERPOOL

According to reports, the Reds were involved in a spectacular trade that included Rafael Nadal of Barcelona and Luis Diaz.

According to what I’ve been told, those claims are untrue since Liverpool would not consider trading Diaz at this moment.

The winger is a “loyal fan” of Barcelona and “dreams” of playing for the Catalan giants in the future, according to new revelations from Diaz’s father.

According to insiders, Liverpool has no intention of letting the Colombian international go or accepting a bid for him.

In the meantime, Raphinha’s services have also been linked to Tottenham and Newcastle.

I’ve been informed that Barcelona is probably making noise in an attempt to pique interest in the Brazil international.

Premier League teams are expected to jump at the chance to get him if the proper price is offered, however insiders claim he is not currently highly regarded on any club’s shortlist.

When Barca needs to raise money to sign Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo permanently in the summer, Premier League teams like Spurs, Newcastle, and Liverpool will be more interested.

According to what I understand, Raphinha might sign a deal valued between £40 and £50 million, two years after leaving Leeds United.

CHELSEA

Despite Ian Maatsen’s lack of recent first-team involvement, the Blues still intend to offer him a long-term new contract.

After the club exercised a one-year option, his Chelsea contract was recently extended to June 2025. However, Mauricio Pochettino’s team is eager to have him sign a lengthier contract to safeguard their asset.

Maatsen turned down a move to Burnley during the summer transfer window because he wanted to establish himself at Stamford Bridge.

He recently expressed his wish to play regular first-team football and to keep his options open.

He would be interested in such move, according to someone I spoke to, but a loan exit could

In the meantime, Marc Cucurella has managed to turn Pochettino around after he was on the verge of joining Manchester United in the summer.

He is now expected to play a significant role in Chelsea’s defence this season after even filling in at right-back in recent games.

They tell me it would be shocking if Chelsea thought about letting him go in January.

ARSENAL

After opting to shuffle up their attacking options, the Gunners are interested in both Brentford star Ivan Toney and Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, who desires a more muscular presence in his frontline, admires both players and their characteristics.

Compared to similar-sized current forwards Eddie Nketiah and Gabriel Jesus, Vlahovic and Toney would supply that.

According to sources, Juventus’ financial predicament may compel them to sell Vlahovic in 2024, but they are unlikely to let him go in the middle of the season.

Arsenal might have to wait until the summer transfer window to acquire their man as Brentford is expected to demand a high price in January in order to trade Toney.

But from what I hear, they will undoubtedly make a striker their top priority in the upcoming window.