Kane yet to speak to 'great manager' Nuno with full focus on England

By Sports Desk July 05, 2021

Harry Kane has described Nuno Espirito Santo as a "great manager" but will hold off from speaking to his new Tottenham boss until after England's Euro 2020 campaign.

The 27-year-old's club future has been a hot topic of debate after admitting in May he feels at a "crossroads" in his career following another trophyless campaign with Spurs. 

Kane, who has spent the past 17 years with the north London club aside from four loan spells away, is a rumoured target for Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Keeping hold of the prolific striker will be a top priority for Nuno, who was last week confirmed as Jose Mourinho's permanent successor.

But Kane has yet to discuss his future with the ex-Wolves coach as he is eager to focus solely on helping England to Euro 2020 glory on home soil over the next week.

"Whenever a new manager comes in, I guess there's a level of excitement around the club," Kane, who has scored three goals in England's run to the semi-finals, told talkSPORT.

"Obviously, I've not been there and not had any contact with him. I'm away with England now and my full focus is on here.

"Hopefully, we've got a week left. He's a great manager and did a great job at getting Wolves playing a really good way.

"Let's get back and I'm sure we'll be in contact after the tournament."

 

Kane finished as the Premier League's top scorer last season with 23 goals, making him the third player to win the award three times after Thierry Henry (four) and Alan Shearer.

He also set up 14 goals to become only the second player in the Premier League era to top the charts for both goals and assists, the other being Andy Cole for Newcastle United in 1993-94.

Those 37 goals involvements were his most across a league campaign in his career, while his 14 assists doubled a previous high of seven in 2016-17.

Kane is under contract for another three years and new sporting director Fabio Paratici stressed on Monday that Spurs have no intention of selling the "special" player.

Asked about the comments made by Paratici, Kane said: "Of course, as a player you want to be wanted, you want to feel like you're loved, which I do.

"I haven't had the chance to talk to any of these people yet. I'm sure we'll get to know each other after the tournament, have a phone call or two once I get a week or two of holiday.

"To get praise from big people from football is great, it gives you confidence, it gives you motivation so of course it’s nice to hear."

 

While Kane has yet to speak with Nuno or Paratici, he has been in dialogue with Mourinho since the Portuguese was sacked by Tottenham in April.

"He's been texting me," Kane said of the now-Roma boss. "It's common knowledge we have a great relationship and got on really well.

"I really respect him as a manager and person. I wish him all the best at Roma. It is great to have one of the best managers in the world on your side.

"I will always respect him and hopefully be in contact with him for the rest of my career."

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    Defending champions Glenmuir High kept their title defence alive with a 2-1 win over Kingston College in a keenly contested ISSA Champions Cup quarterfinal clash at the Montego Bay Sports Complex on Saturday.

    A late winner from substitute Nyron Allen (90+1) broke Kingston College’s hearts and sealed Glenmuir’s semifinal berth after Denzil Watson’s 41st-minute goal gave the Clarendon-based team the lead. Demario Dailey (61st) found Kingston College’s goal in the encounter played in testing rainy conditions.

    Glenmuir will square off against Ocho Rios High in one semifinal, while Jamaica College and Hydel will cross swords in the other to determine the finalists.

    Winning coach Andrew Peart was pleased with how his team navigated the conditions and, by extension, a disciplined Kingston College defence.

    “We got a lot from the substitutes; throughout the game we were always wondering how we could get a stronger foothold on the game because KC were really disciplined, but we made some adjustments to try and attack the game instead of waiting on a goal to come. So the lesson is to never give up and always fight until the end, and today was testament to that,” Peart said.

    Both teams approached the encounter with energy and intent, despite heavy rain making conditions challenging. Players struggled to maintain footing on the wet turf, but the intensity of the game never wavered.

    The breakthrough came in the 41st minute when Glenmuir’s O’Neil Headley delivered a well-placed corner to the back post. The ball was headed back across the goal, where Watson reacted quickest to fire home, giving Glenmuir a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.

    Though down, Kingston College, true to their motto, came out more purposeful on the resumption, and their persistence paid off a minute past the hour mark when Dailey unleashed a speculative shot from distance. The ball skidded off the wet surface, deceiving Glenmuir’s goalkeeper Justin Murray, who was left flat-footed as the ball nestled into the net to make it 1-1.

    The equalizer ignited the match further, with both sides creating chances. In the 66th minute, Watson broke through Kingston College’s defense, but goalkeeper Malique Williams charged off his line to make a crucial block.

    Minutes later, Watson had another opportunity, but Williams once again stood tall, denying Glenmuir’s talisman.

    Kingston College came close to taking the lead in the 81st minute when Dailey found space inside the box, but his effort hit the sidenetting, leaving the Glenmuir bench breathing a sigh of relief.

    As the game edged toward extra time, Glenmuir found a moment of brilliance as substitute Ricardo Binns orchestrated a flowing move down the right flank. His precise pass across the face of goal caught Kingston College’s defence off guard, allowing Allen to dart in ahead of his marker and fire home from close range in time added.

    Kingston College’s Head coach, Vassell Reynolds, was gracious in defeat.

    “It was a good game from both teams. We had a plan, and right down to the T, the boys executed well. It is just unfortunate that we conceded when we couldn’t get back but really proud of what the boys delivered today based on what we planned. So I am pleased with the performance but not the result,” Reynolds noted.

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    Ronaldo Barrett tried to give Hydel the lead in the 24th minute with a speculative left-footed shot from distance, but Garvey Maceo goalkeeper Garfield Tomlinson handled it comfortably.

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    "I'm not a defender of this and I understand the fans perfectly."

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