Harry Kane was the hero of the hour as Spurs came from behind to beat West Ham 3-2 at White Hart Lane on Saturday, and has now reiterated his desire to stay at the club. Reports last week suggested Kane and Tottenham could be set for a contract stand-off, with chairman Daniel Levy unwilling to alter his strict wage structure. Kane earns significantly less than his England teammates Jamie Vardy, Daniel Sturridge and Wayne Rooney and less than summer singing Moussa Sissoko. It is understandable that Kane would look to get a wage that reflects his status at the club; the England international is without doubt Mauricio Pochettino’s first choice striker. Kane said:
“Hopefully we will have no issues with the contract.
“I am happy at the club and want to be here for a long, long time.
“We are in talks and I’m sure we will get something sorted.
“We’ve got a great young team, new training ground, new stadium being built, great young manager.
“The future is very bright. It’s important that we keep hold of all our players and keep building on this great team that we have.”
Spurs must try to keep their biggest assets with the stadium move just around the corner. With the influx of new TV money, clubs will be able to pay Kane and other Spurs players huge salaries in an effort to tempt them away from north London. Kane is not likely to be principally motivated by money, but seeing somebody contribute less but earn more is likely to grate in any walk of life. Nevertheless there seems to be a debt of gratitude from Kane towards the club, who have consistently showed faith in him and stuck by him through numerous loan moves. Once a player decided he wants to remain at a club, the financial compromises needed to make this happen are usually arrived at without too much difficulty.
Elsewhere, Harry Redknapp has said Tottenham have an advantage in the title race because of their defensive steel. Redknapp admitted that six team can still claim to have eyes on the league title, but thinks that Pochettino’s side have the top flights back four. Chelsea have kept six straight clean sheets (albeit with a back three), but Tottenham did have the Premier League’s best defence last season. The former Spurs manager said:
“There’s six teams here, and I’m including Manchester United in that, just about on the fringes of the six. Any of them could win it, but they’ve all got frailties, especially at the back.
“There isn’t a great back four, Tottenham’s is probably the best back four when they’re all fit. Outside of that, Kompany has come off injured again, so you look at Manchester City and they don’t fill you with confidence at the back…it’s wide open.”
Finally, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte already has his eyes on next Saturday’s clash with Spurs at Stamford Bridge. The Blues went top of the table with a 1-0 win away at Middlesbrough and face London rivals Tottenham next in a repeat of last season’s epic 2-2 draw which ended in a mass brawl. Pochettino’s side have not won at the Bridge for 26 years, but Conte is expecting a tough game:
“This game gives us more confidence and it increases our trust in what we are doing.
“Now it’s important to think about the next game, against Tottenham – a tough game, a massive game. Middlesbrough is now the past for us.”
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