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Kane: Liverpool were right to sell Coutinho - but I'm happy as long as Spurs are progressing

<span>Harry Kane believes it makes sense for clubs to sell their top players when they want to leave – but he says he will be happy at Tottenham as long as the Lilywhites are improving and challenging for trophies.</span>
Harry Kane believes it makes sense for clubs to sell their top players when they want to leave – but he says he will be happy at Tottenham as long as the Lilywhites are improving and challenging for trophies.

Mauricio Pochettino stated yesterday that Philippe Coutinho’s £142million transfer from Liverpool to Barcelona shows “how difficult it is for the clubs to keep their best players”.

The Argentinian went on to comment on Kane’s future, saying the striker is “so special because he loves Tottenham and he feels Tottenham”, but he added Spurs “need to be careful and be clever how we manage him” because “the player needs to choose to stay here – you cannot force everyone to stay here”.

Kane concurs. Asked for his opinion on Coutinho’s move, the 24-year-old admitted he sees little sense in a club keeping a star player against their will.

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“If a player wants to go then why would you stop him?” he said. “He’s not going to be in the club, he’s not going to want to play every game, he’s not going to put his heart on the line.

“From the Coutinho point of view, I think he’s been very professional in the six months he’s played this year, and Liverpool have got a good offer from Barca and accepted it.

“I wouldn’t say the [clubs are] powerless but I can see why if a player wants to go, you would let him go.

“It’s hard to talk about it, but with the situation at the time, I guess you assess it and see what’s best for the team and what the manager wants to do, and you go from there.”

Kane, who says he is not in contract talks with Tottenham and has no knowledge of any plans for discussions about a new deal, was then asked what Spurs need to do to keep him at the club long-term.

He replied: “I’ve always said: just keep progressing, keep getting better. We want to start winning trophies so that’s the aim. As long as the club keep doing that then I’m happy here.”

Tottenham took a forward step in that regard yesterday by progressing through the third round of the FA Cup, beating League One side AFC Wimbledon 3-0 at Wembley.

Kane, who scored the first two goals, admits Manchester City’s 15-point lead at the top of the Premier League means the FA Cup has extra importance for Spurs now.

“I think this year, especially with us kind of being out of contention in the league… Of course we want to finish in the top four but it (the FA Cup) is a chance for us to win a competition,” he said.


“Once the Champions League starts there’s going to be a lot of games, but I think we’ve got a good enough squad to rotate, like we did yesterday – not everyone but a few here and there – and get the job done.

“City running away with [the league] makes… We want to win a trophy somehow and this is a competition we’re looking at to do that.

“We’ve been close in the league in the last couple of years but the aim of the game is to win trophies, and that’s what we’ve got to try and do.

“We’re still in the Champions League and the FA Cup. We know the Champions League will be tough so the FA Cup’s one where we have a good chance. We’ll be one of the favourites and we’ve just got to see who we get in the next round and go from there.”

Jan Vertonghen, the scorer of the third goal against Wimbledon, added: “This team has been waiting for a while for a trophy. A lot of the players haven’t even won a trophy yet. I think the team deserves a trophy and that’s what we’re working for every day.

“Is this our best chance of silverware this season? We’re eyeing something else but obviously the FA Cup is up there.

“I think we had all the chances to go for the final last year and we didn’t take it. It’s what we want to change this year.

“It’s big – the FA Cup might be the biggest cup in the world. We just want to go through to the final and win a trophy.”

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