Arsenal legend believes Tottenham will finish in the bottom half of the table if Harry Kane leaves this summer
Former Arsenal attacker Paul Merson believes Tottenham Hotspur will finish in the bottom half of the Premier League table if striker Harry Kane leaves this summer. The England international has been heavily linked with a move to Bayern Munich.
As per David Ornstein of The Athletic, Tottenham have accepted Bayern's bid of over €100 million for Kane. It's now up to the forward to make a decision on his future.
Merson, talking on Sky Sports, claimed Tottenham will struggle to find goals after Kane's proposed departure and will finish in the bottom half. He said:
"Kane scored 30 goals last season and Spurs finished nowhere near. You feel sorry for Ange Postecoglou, but you’re talking about a team who might, might, get in the top four if he stays, then a team who doesn’t get in the top half if he leaves.
"They’re 100 percent a bottom half team if he leaves. Who is going to get the goals? They finished eighth last season. I like James Maddison, he’s a good player. But Leicester got relegated."
While the Englishman scored 30 league goals in the 2022/23 season, the rest of the Tottenham squad could manage just 40 more as they finished eighth in the table.
Richarlison is the only other experienced striking option at Tottenham but he scored just once in the league last term.
Fabrizio Romano's update on Harry Kane to Bayern Munich saga
Football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has provided an update on the Harry Kane transfer saga from the player's perspective.
He claimed that the player's entourage has informed both Spurs and Bayern Munich that they want a solution before the Premier League season commences.
"For Harry Kane, a crucial few days ahead, because his camp communicated to both Tottenham and Bayern that they want any deal to be decided this week," the Italian wrote in his CaughtOffside Substack.
"Harry Kane’s preference is not to leave after the first game in the Premier League this season. Tottenham play on Sunday so the expectation is to get the deal done by Friday or Saturday, otherwise the deal will collapse. Let’s see what happens," he added.
Tottenham are set to start their Premier League campaign on Sunday, August 13, against Brentford.