Wenger respects Manchester City for not meeting Tottenham's Kane valuation

By Sam Preston

Manchester City’s pursuit of Tottenham talisman Harry Kane was one of the big stories of the summer transfer window.

It was reported by the Telegraph that the bidding got up to £125 million for the England captain but Spurs held firm.

The Times claimed that Tottenham’s asking price was £150 million and it is likely that Daniel Levy will keep his demands high this summer despite Kane being a year closer to the end of his contract.

Plenty have asked why City went to a British record £100 million for Jack Grealish, in an area of the pitch where they already have plenty of options, but did not go a bit bigger for Kane, when they still need a striker.

On BeIN Sports last night, host Richard Keys asked former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger that question and he said: “The answer is really simple. Tottenham refused to sell Kane.

“I would say for me personally I believe that City is a very well run club and despite the fact they have a lot of money, they put prices on everything. It is very rationally managed.

“If they decided the maximum they will put in there (for Kane) is £100m, they did it and I respect that. They are fantastically well-run overall and if you think like you (Richard Keys) think, you finish bankrupt!”

It is true that Aston Villa seemed more amenable to a sale than Tottenham, with their fixed £100 million release clause if anyone wanted Grealish.

Levy is notoriously more difficult to do business with but there is also the fact that Kane is older than Grealish to factor in.

City knew that Erling Haaland’s release clause would kick in this summer and they had just won the Premier League with a false nine anyway.