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‘Dodged a bullet’… ESPN pundit thinks £86m player will be so happy he didn’t join Manchester United this summer
Craig Burley believes Harry Kane has ‘dodged a bullet’ by missing out on a move to Manchester United over the summer.
Speaking on the podcast, the pundit reacted to Man United’s 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich at Old Trafford last night.
The defeat saw Erik ten Hag’s side crash out of the Champions League and Europe altogether after finishing bottom of their group.
Harry Kane started for Bayern and created the winner as his deft touch set up Kingsley Coman in the second half.
Of course, the England captain was heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford over the summer as United searched for a new striker.
The Red Devils eventually opted for Rasmus Hojlund, with Kane seemingly out of reach at the time due to Tottenham’s reluctance to sell to a Premier League rival.
Kane eventually completed an switch to Munich on the eve of the season and Craig Burley believes he’ll be relieved he didn’t end up in Manchester.
Burley thinks Kane will be happy after missing out on United move
Burley was speaking on ESPN FC last night and claimed Kane ‘dodged a bullet’ by missing out on a move to United this summer.
He said: “If Harry Kane has gone to speak to the English media, and I presume he has, the only words he needs to say is ‘thank God this lot didn’t bid for me properly in the summer’.
“I was a big advocate [for United bidding for Kane] and I think rightly so, United had to go for big, top-quality players. Rasmus Hojlund needs somebody he can lean on, so he can come off the bench, and play the odd game. He’s not going to carry that frontline.
“So, I was a big advocate of going for these big players, which they didn’t do and they went and spent their money in all these different areas.
“Harry Kane has dodged a bullet there, let’s be honest. There’s no point in this team even being in European football this year.
“This is too big for them. Even the Europa League is too big for them, they can’t handle most of the teams in the Premier League.”
Kane has been in exceptional form in Germany this term, netting 22 goals and eight assists in just 20 appearances in all competitions.
The 30-year-old was hunting down the Premier League goalscoring record before leaving Tottenham. Many expected him to see out his contract at Spurs in search of a big move in England.
It was clear that United were fighting a losing battle when it came to their interest in Kane, with Daniel Levy unwilling to offload Tottenham’s all-time top goalscorer to a direct rival.
Whether or not United would have been far better off had they signed Kane is up for debate.
Hojlund is yet to score in the Premier League but managed five goals in six games in Europe this term.
The 20-year-old has put in some promising displays but United’s problems run far deeper than who is leading the line for them at the moment.