LONDON: In this file photo taken on May 19, 2021, Tottenham Hotspur's English striker Harry Kane reacts during the English Premier League football match between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. - AFP

LONDON: Harry Kane ended speculation over a potential move to Manchester City by announcing yesterday he will remain at Tottenham this season. The 28-year-old is the second top goalscorer in Tottenham's history with 221, but is yet to win a major trophy at club or international level. Kane had made clear his desire to leave his boyhood club in the quest to end his wait for silverware. However, he still has three years left on a six-year deal signed in 2018, allowing Spurs chairman Daniel Levy to demand a fee well in excess of the £100 million ($137 million) English record City paid Aston Villa for Jack Grealish earlier this month.

Kane missed his side's 1-0 victory over City on the opening weekend of the Premier League season after returning late to pre-season training. However, he was warmly welcomed back by the Tottenham support as he made his first appearance of the season as a substitute in a 1-0 win at Wolves last weekend.

"It was incredible to see the reception from the Spurs fans on Sunday and to read some of the messages of support I've had in the last few weeks," he posted on Twitter. "I will be staying at Tottenham this summer and will be 100 percent focused on helping the team achieve success."

According to reports, Tottenham turned down a City bid of £125 million for their star striker. Levy will be hoping his gamble in turning that fee down will be rewarded by Kane firing Tottenham back into the Champions League next season. Under former manager Mauricio Pochettino, Spurs reached the Champions League in four consecutive seasons between 2016/17 and 2019/20, including reaching the final for the first time in the club's history in 2018. The decision to sack Pochettino in November 2019 and replace the Argentine with Jose Mourinho has backfired on Levy as Tottenham have finished sixth and seventh in the Premier League in the past two seasons.

Mourinho was also unable to end Tottenham's trophy drought that stretches back to 2008. A prolonged search for Mourinho's successor upped the pressure on Levy not to lose Kane this summer. Nearly three months after the former Chelsea manager was sacked, Nuno Espirito Santo was appointed as coach on June 30. However, Spurs have made light of a disruptive few months by taking maximum points from their opening two league games.

"Great news. Fantastic news," said Nuno, who hinted Kane could return to the starting line-up for tonight's Europa Conference League playoff against Pacos de Ferreira. "I think since Harry joined us he has been working so this is what we value. His attitude in training has been excellent. It's finished, Harry is going to be with us. He is an option for tomorrow. It is great news for everybody."

Personal glory could also keep Kane in north London for the long haul. He is just 45 goals behind the legendary Jimmy Greaves as Tottenham's all-time top scorer. City were targeting Kane as a long-term successor to Sergio Aguero at the Etihad. And Aguero's record of scoring the most Premier League goals for one club of 184 could go this season with Kane having netted 166 for Spurs. - AFP