Tottenham Hotspur are "still fighting" to keep Harry Kane, but Thomas Tuchel is a "crucial part of the story", and the German manager is "pushing" to get the deal over the line, claims transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.
Is Harry Kane leaving Tottenham Hotspur?
It hasn't taken long, but Tottenham striker Kane is once again at the centre of another protracted transfer saga.
Still, in a slight twist to the narrative, it's German giants Bayern Munich who are after the England captain and not either of the Manchester clubs.
The Bundesliga champions have already had two bids rejected by the Lilywhites, the latter being worth around €80m (£69m) plus add-ons, but that hasn't deterred them as they prepare a third offer to truly test the resolve of Daniel Levy and Co.
The club's all-time top goalscorer has just 12 months remaining on his £200,00-a-week contract, which is part of the reason for the Bavarians' comparatively low initial offers for the star striker.
However, the other reason that Thomas Tuchel's side feel so emboldened over this transfer is the belief that Kane is keen on the move himself and that if a deal can be struck between the two clubs, he would be enthusiastic about the prospect of playing for FC Hollywood next season, per Fabrizio Romano.
He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:
"From what I'm hearing, Thomas Tuchel is absolutely a crucial factor, a crucial part of the story in the Harry Kane saga. I mention saga because we know that with Tottenham, it's never easy to negotiate, and, at the moment, from Daniel Levy, it still looks like a very difficult deal to make.
"I can guarantee to you that Bayern are still working on this one. They got two bids rejected, the second was €80m (£69m) plus add-ons. It was a verbal bid, but from Tottenham the message has always been 'this is absolutely not enough to sign Harry Kane', but Tomas Tuchel is really pushing.
"He feels that Harry Kane is open to the move to Bayern, and this is why Tuchel is pushing, and pushing, and pushing internally at Bayern to make it happen.
"Bayern will try again for Harry Kane, for sure this is not over but we know how complicated it is to negotiate with Tottenham and they are still fighting to keep Harry at the club. So, not an easy one but Bayern are still there and Thomas Tuchel is crucial part of this story."
How good was Harry Kane last season?
To put it succinctly, he was astoundingly good.
Had last year been any other Premier League season in history, one without the inhuman exploits of a certain Norwegian goal machine, there would be a lot more people talking about just how brilliant Kane was for a Spurs side that were utterly dysfunctional for much of the campaign.
In his 38 league appearances, the "world-class" forward scored 30 goals, created three assists for his teammates, and averaged a match rating of 7.51, per WhoScored.
His underlying numbers are, unsurprisingly, equally outstanding.
According to Fbref, who compare players in a similar position across Europe's top five leagues, Kane sits in the top 4% of strikers for progressive passes, the top 10% for shot-creating actions, the top 14% for non-penalty goals, the top 16% for expected assists and goals, and the top 10% for total shots, all per 90.
If that wasn't enough, FBref have also rated the equally prolific Robert Lewandowski as the most similar player to Kane in all of Europe's top five leagues, showing that the two of them are genuinely in a league of their own when it comes to scoring goals.
If Spurs can keep a hold of their talismanic forward, they'll undoubtedly be better for it next season, but is it worth risking their greatest player ever walking away for free? Only Levy knows the answer to that one.