Harry Kane could be set for a sensational exit from Tottenham Hotspur after reports claimed the club's chairman, Daniel Levy, is ready to sell the England captain to alleviate some of the financial strain brought on by the coronavirus shutdown.
Kane, 26, established himself as a regular in the Spurs team during the 2014/15 season and has since become one of the club's most important players. In 278 appearances in all competitions, Kane has scored 181 goals and created 30 assists.
However, Kane's value - which according to transfermarkt has dropped from £150m to £120m since the pandemic - has meant he could be used to give Spurs a much-needed economical boost.
Despite last month posting revenues of £460.7m (Dh2.1 billion) and profits from operations of £172.7m - excluding football trading and before depreciation - for the financial year ending June 2019, Tottenham were still among the first Premier League clubs to furlough non-playing staff.
With the club still owing £637m on the loan for their new stadium and around £83m in transfer fees, the lack of income from broadcast rights and matchday revenue during the pandemic is reportedly hitting Tottenham hard.
By sanctioning a sale for Kane, with reports suggesting Spurs would look for around £200m for their star striker, the club would be able to take a significant step toward balancing the books.
For Kane's part, he made it clear in recent weeks that he would be prepared to leave his boyhood club if he felt the team was not progressing and he was not regularly fighting for trophies.
“I’ll always love Spurs but I've always said if I don't feel we're progressing as a team or going in the right direction, then I'm not someone to just stay there for the sake of it,” he said in an Instagram Live chat with Jamie Redknapp. “It’s not a definite I am going to stay there forever.”
For Tottenham to attract the sort of fee Levy is reportedly looking for, there will be a limited number of clubs that could afford Kane. Manchester United have been perennially linked with a move for the England international, while Real Madrid have been mentioned in recent days as having an interest.
Given the economic climate brought on by the coronavirus outbreak, a £200m asking price - which would be a world record fee, shading Neymar's £195 move to Paris Saint-Germain - seems steep.
However, should Kane leave Spurs in the near future, it will almost certainly shatter the British record fee United spent on taking Paul Pogba back from Juventus for £89m.
