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After months of rumours and negotiations, this summer season’s blockbuster switch saga involving Harry Kane, Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur got here right down to the wire.

On Thursday, Spurs lastly agreed to Bayern’s fourth bid in six weeks for the England captain. Even after Kane had agreed to affix Bayern on a four-year deal, he was delayed from hopping aboard the personal jet ready to take off from London-Stansted airport.

Whereas it appeared that Kane had doubts about whether or not he actually wished to go away Tottenham after being a part of the membership for nearly twenty years, the truth was that it unexpectedly took a while earlier than the final monetary particulars have been clarified. Finally, he landed in Munich, held up a red-and-white jersey and had an enormous smile on his face.

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“It was all the time going to be a tricky determination,” Kane mentioned at a information convention on Sunday. “In the end, I am an expert, I’ve all the time pushed myself to my limits and the time was proper.”

All through all of this, Bayern supporters wanted to be affected person; they’d learn loads of rumors and rumour, moods oscillating between hopeful and pessimistic. In the long run, they acquired what they desperately wished, a world-class No. 9 to fill the void left by Robert Lewandowski’s departure to Barcelona final summer season, however whether or not the wait was price it stays to be seen.

The beginnings of Bayern’s curiosity

What can already be mentioned is that Bayern’s bosses went out of their option to break the membership’s switch document, providing Tottenham a package deal price €100 million with an extra €20m in add-ons. In addition they deviated from the standard membership coverage of protecting switch negotiations behind closed doorways. A lot of Bayern’s pursuit of Kane was taking place within the public by the use of fixed leaks to the media.

The saga took greater than a month to unfold, however Bayern’s curiosity within the England captain dates again to 12 months in the past, when Lewandowski left for the Camp Nou. As Bayern looked for a substitute for the longtime No. 9, they turned to Kane, who wasn’t accessible.

As an alternative, they signed Sadio Mané from Liverpool, hoping that they might use the Senegal ahead in one thing of a false-nine position. That experiment did not work out over the early phases of the 2022-23 marketing campaign, although, forcing the Bavarians to successfully resolve {that a} conventional centre-forward can be their prime precedence for this 12 months’s summer season switch window.

Bayern initiated contact within the first weeks of summer season, with sources telling ESPN’s James Olley that head coach Thomas Tuchel met with Kane at his household residence, because the striker signaled his readiness to affix Bayern. This inspired the German membership to accentuate their efforts and search an settlement with Tottenham. Two executives inside Bayern’s newly shaped switch committee have been tasked with main the negotiations: Jan-Christian Dreesen, the chief government, and Marco Neppe, the technical director.

When Bayern submitted their first bid in late June, they used the provide to provoke a line of communication with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy. Whereas Bayern have been properly conscious that the provided €70m was nowhere close to sufficient to fulfill Levy’s calls for, the German membership wished to get a really feel for the way seemingly a switch could be this summer season.

As Bayern adopted up with one other, barely bigger bid of €79m, they meant to underline how severe their curiosity was.

Bayern have been recognized to conduct their switch enterprise quite discretely, however they determined to deviate from their ordinary strategy, as loads of particulars of the negotiations have been leaked to the general public a method or one other. It appears as if the idea was that they wanted to make their efforts be seen.

Resiliency key to Bayern’s pursuit

A recurring theme in Bayern’s pursuit of stars from overseas is the German champions’ declare that their potential signings wouldn’t solely elevate their squad, but in addition the Bundesliga as an entire.

“Bayern all the time attempt to usher in stars,” membership president Herbert Hainer informed German soccer journal Kicker in July. “Harry Kane is a extremely enticing participant, the England captain and a prime scorer. He would do us and the Bundesliga good.”

Hainer’s remark is also seen as an indication to Tottenham that the Bundesliga facet weren’t prepared to surrender too simply. After Bayern’s first two bids, there was steady communication between executives of each golf equipment. Dreesen then met Levy for breakfast the day earlier than Tottenham left London for Australia, the place they quickly started their preseason tour.

As soon as Spurs have been again residence, Dreesen and Neppe meant to fulfill Levy and different members of Tottenham’s hierarchy on July 28, though the assembly can be postponed for 3 days, when the 2 events mentioned the matter in particular person in London for just a few hours.

Within the aftermath, Dreesen and different executives remained assured, and submitted one other bid on Aug. 4. This time Bayern provided a complete of €100m.

As Levy rejected that bid on Aug. 7, Bayern’s switch committee held a gathering the identical day, deciding they’d improve their provide another time. That call was communicated to Spurs.

So Bayern ready yet one more bid, and the €100m provided on Aug. 9 got here near the €116m that had reportedly been demanded by Levy in earlier conversations. The Rekordmeister additionally provided to pay a substantial chunk of the mounted switch payment quite shortly, whereas so usually funds in fashionable transfers are unfold over three or 4 years.

Spurs accepted the provide of €100 million with an extra €20m in add-ons a day later.

Sights set on Wembley

A couple of weeks earlier than the ultimate settlement was reached, sources inside Tottenham’s facility have been satisfied that Kane would go away. Whether or not Levy had already made up his thoughts in July and wished to get the absolute best monetary deal will seemingly stay a thriller, however provided that Bayern had come fairly shut with their third bid, it will have come off as cussed to let the deal fall by due to a small hole in valuations.

Bayern have a historical past of breaking their document switch charges and disrupting the Bundesliga all through the previous decade. In 2012, they reacted to Borussia Dortmund’s back-to-back championship wins by signing Javi Martínez from Athletic Membership for €40m. A 12 months later, they introduced in Mario Götze from Dortmund for €37m. In 2019, Bayern nearly doubled their switch document by signing Lucas Hernández from Atletico Madrid for €80m. Leroy Sané joined the following summer season for €49m from Manchester Metropolis.

A few of these massive arrivals did not fairly fulfill Bayern’s hierarchy. Hernández, as an illustration, struggled with numerous accidents throughout his four-year stint and was not too long ago moved to Paris Saint-Germain for €45.

Moreover, a big switch payment alone does affords no assure {that a} participant will likely be a difference-maker. Nonetheless, contemplating how difficult the No. 9 position is in at the moment’s recreation and the way few nice centre-forwards there are, Kane was nearly Bayern’s solely choice, as they have been decided so as to add solely somebody from the highest shelf.

Through the lengthy pursuit of the England captain, Bayern’s hierarchy had basically uncared for any potential various, absolutely centered on bringing the 30-year-old to the Allianz Enviornment. Bayern have been satisfied that they negotiated with Tottenham from a place of energy, provided that this was the final switch window the Premier League membership might transfer Kane for big payment and primarily based on the idea that Kane had made up his thoughts and wished to affix Bayern.

The pursuit was profitable, however now the laborious work begins, with Tuchel being tasked to combine the document signing into the staff as shortly as potential and kind an assault that may compete for the Champions League. Coincidentally, the ultimate in 2024 will likely be performed at Wembley Stadium.

“I joined this membership to have likelihood of profitable the Champions League,” Kane mentioned on Sunday, “however for it to be at Wembley is wonderful.”

It appears as if the objective for the silverware-starved striker is about.