Sadio Mane has confirmed he will stay at Bayern Munich this summer – despite their interest in England captain Harry Kane.
Tottenham have rejected Bayern’s first bid of £70million for Kane, who turns 30 next month, but the Bundesliga champions are expected to submit a second offer shortly. Reports in Germany suggest the prolific forward is interested in completing the move.
Mane, 31, has struggled to show his best form since joining Bayern from Liverpool a year ago, due in part to a leg injury which kept him out of the World Cup in Qatar. The Senegal international has scored just seven goals in his 25 Bundesliga appearances.
Mane hit the headlines for the wrong reasons in April following an altercation between him and team-mate Leroy Sane. Mane was suspended and fined for his role in the incident but was soon reintegrated into the squad, helping Bayern win the Bundesliga title.
Mane was asked by Senegalese broadcaster 2sTV whether he will stay at Bayern amid rumours of their interest in Kane. As quoted by German newspaper Bild, Mane said: “Yes, God willing. If everything goes well, I will return to Bayern.
“I love challenges and Bavaria is a big challenge. It is up to me to do whatever it takes to meet this challenge… It was a very complicated season [just gone], that happens. It wasn’t a surprise, I expected things to be a bit complicated. This is completely normal.”
Kane is one of the most prolific strikers in Europe after bagging 30 Premier League goals last season. He is England’s record scorer (58 goals) and Tottenham’s record scorer (280). Only Alan Shearer (260) has scored more than Kane (213) in the Premier League.
Yet Kane has never won a major trophy, losing the Euro 2020 final, 2019 Champions League and two Carabao Cup finals. He is unlikely to break his duck at Tottenham, who haven’t won silverware since 2008, and has just one year left on his Spurs contract.
Kane was tipped to join Manchester United, but they have pulled out of the transfer race. The experienced star is unlikely to complete a move to another Premier League club this summer, with Real Madrid also believed to be considering a move.
According to Bild, Kane has agreed personal terms with Bayern. It’s believed Tottenham want €100m (£86.2m) for their prized asset
