In his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, former Liverpool attacker Stan Collymore discusses some of football’s biggest talking points, including England under-21’s Euros win, Harvey Barnes’ proposed move to Newcastle and Harry Kane’s future, plus much more.
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Surely it’s just a matter of time for England’s senior team…
Firstly, a massive well done to our England under-21s for winning last weekend’s Euros; what a great achievement. We’ve now won international tournaments at under-17, under-20 and under-21 levels in recent years – there is just one more to go.
This most recent success proves that St. George’s Park is working; it’s doing something right because we keep producing results. It was set up for this exact reason. The FA wanted England to be successful so they’ve invested in a set-up that works with players of all ages as well as managers and coaches.
Taking nothing away from what the under-17s and under-20s achieved by winning the World Cup and Euros, but the most notable difference when it comes to what the under-21s have just done is the fact they’re closest to becoming senior players for Gareth Southgate. You have the likes of Emile Smith Rowe, Anthony Gordon and Morgan Gibbs-White who are within touching distance of receiving their first senior caps, so Southgate should look to keep the core of that group together and start embedding them now for the future – what would be the harm in playing them in friendlies or Nations League games?
Harvey Barnes to Newcastle could be signing of the season…
It looks like Harvey Barnes is on his way to Newcastle United for around £25 million. What a great deal that would be if they can get it over the line.
He has a decent goalscoring record for Leicester City, it’s about one in four; that’s not bad at all, especially when you take into account how dreadful their season was last time out. I do think Eddie Howe will aim to improve that though; I think he’ll want him netting closer to one in every three games.
He’s only 25 years old so he hasn’t yet reached his prime and if he can do well at St. James’ Park under Howe then I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he adds to his single England cap. He looks hungry enough to take the next step in his career too.
Also, if he does sign for Newcastle and ends up playing well next term, especially in the Champions League, then for £25 million, he’s going to look even more a shrewd signing, and could easily be the signing of the season.
No guarantees Allan Saint-Maximin leaves St. James’ Park though…
I certainly don’t think Barnes’ impending arrival automatically means Allan Saint-Maximin has to leave. Howe will probably be thinking about the flexibility he could add to his attacking system.
Some may say Barnes would be in direct competition with Saint-Maximin to play on the left wing, but I don’t see why they both couldn’t play together on occasion. The same for Gordon.
Years ago, wingers used to rotate with each other on the flanks, and although you do still see that from time to time, it’s nowhere near as frequently practised as it once was, so I wonder if Howe might experiment with his wingers next season because the prospect of having a fluid setup which would allow Barnes and Saint-Maximin to play free-flowing attacking football would certainly frighten defences.
Does Harry Kane lack ambition?
He’s got to go. He’s done everything he needs to do at Tottenham Hotspur; there is nothing else left for him there now, and if he doesn’t push for a transfer then I am questioning his ambition.
If Kane continues to sit there quietly and make it easy for Daniel Levy to turn down £60 million – £70 million bids from a club like Bayern Munich, who are always in with a chance of winning the Bundesliga and the Champions League, then surely he doesn’t really have any desire to leave Spurs.
Fans may argue that he and his family are settled in London, but so what? – Virtually every footballer has a family. Do you think all these young Brazilians who travel from South America to Europe don’t have families? But when it comes to Kane, and the possibility of leaving his parents and parents-in-law, we’re not talking about Rio de Janeiro; we’re talking about Munich – it’s an hour-and-a-half flight away from London. If the notion is that he’s settled and he wants to stay in London, that to me shows a distinct lack of ambition. Let’s not forget – this is a world-class player who does not know what it feels like to lift a major trophy. Surely the time has come for Kane to be demanding silverware.
As for Levy, I think he’s playing a dangerous game. Don’t get me wrong, I know he’s a good businessman, but unless he takes Bayern’s offer, he’s likely to lose his club’s best-ever player for free, and as president Nasser Al-Khelaifi recently said while talking about the possibility of PSG losing Kylian Mbappe next summer: “By the standards of football, you never see your best player leave for free. It just doesn’t happen.”
There is a reason why only Bayern Munich are bidding for Kane – he’s overpriced even at £70m, so Levy should grab the chance to sell him with both hands. Forget the fact he’s going to be a free agent next year and eligible to negotiate a pre-contract with clubs outside of England from January, he’s coming up 30 years old and doesn’t have the best injury record. I don’t think we’ll see Manchester United return to the running before the end of the window, unless something drastic happens, like a Qatari takeover, and there isn’t really anywhere else for him to go. Real Madrid have their sights set on Mbappe, PSG’s preference seems to be Victor Osimhen, Manchester City already have Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez and Chelsea still have outgoings to sort.
So considering football doesn’t wait for anybody if I were Kane, I would be doing all I can behind the scenes to force a move to Bayern Munich because it could very well be his last chance to win major domestic silverware.
Nice one, Poch…
On a final note, I just wanted to mention Mauricio Pochettino and his offer of support to Dele. We all know the struggles Dele has faced over the past couple of years, so I thought for Pochettino to come out, in his very first press conference as Chelsea manager and reveal how he plans on contacting one of his former players to have a chat, was really something quite special.
“Football aside, the Argentine’s thoughtfulness and understanding tell you all you need to know, not just about ‘Pochettino the manager’, but also about ‘Pochettino the man’.
Let’s hope Dele has a good conversation with his old boss and can work out what the next steps to take in his career are.