Victor Osimhen’s agent says Harry Kane must leave Spurs before his client will join

The hardest part about finding a second striker at Tottenham Hotspur has always been that Harry Kane is so dang good. Mauricio Pochettino used to talk about it frequently when the club was heavily linked to players like Alvaro Morata — strikers may be interested in coming to Spurs in a vacuum, but any striker who does needs to come to grips with the fact that Tottenham play in a one-striker system, and Harry Kane will always be the top dog.

So it is even today. Spurs have been linked with rising Lille striker Victor Osimhen, a coveted young player who would instantly provide competition, especially as Kane returns from an extended period away from the game due to injury. The Nigerian international had 18 goals and six assists before football shut down, and at age 21 he’s already proving that he’s ready to make the leap.

But would he do that at Tottenham? His agent isn’t so sure. Speaking directly about the links between Spurs and Osimhen to a Nigerian radio station, Ariyo Igbayilola basically said that so long as Kane’s still around, there’s not much point in sending his client there.

“We told Mourinho that if he wants Victor, will Harry Kane be leaving? If Harry Kane is still play for Tottenham will Victor play? Because he will always be benched for him.

“Kane is their number one striker and he is the captain of England, all these will always work for him in the club but at Victor’s detriment. He needs a club where he will always play full game week in, week out. Not to be kept on the bench.”

So first of all, if you want a positive spin on this story, the agent just confirmed that Mourinho has been in contact with Osimhen’s agent about a potential transfer. That’s good! Mou has already poached two assistant coaches from Lille, wants their consultant Luis Campos as technical director, and is also looking at their best young player. Osimhen would be a fantastic addition to Tottenham’s roster, if he wanted to come.

Now, Osimhen’s agent is possibly just saying agent things, as that’s what agents do. There isn’t any concern over playing time that can’t be alleviated for the right price. And while it seems unfathomable to consider right now, there may be a legitimate reason for Spurs to eventually cash in on Harry Kane to revamp the squad down the road; Osimhen coming to Spurs now would basically mean he could inherit the keys to the kingdom with a little time and patience.

But yes, it’s a fair point. Harry Kane will always be the man so long as he remains at Tottenham, and Osimhen should not and would not expect the same amount of minutes as Harry would in Tottenham’s starting lineup. If his main focus is getting massive playing time at age 21, he’s better off either staying at Lille or taking a more intermediary step to a mid-table club where he can be the undisputed star.

Here’s the part of the article where I remind readers that nobody knows what the market is going to be like, what Osimhen might conceivably cost, and whether he’d even remotely be in Spurs’ price range, even if they were serious about buying him. Until we get more clarity on those points, it’s probably not worth dwelling on these kinds of rumors. But it’s fun to dream, isn’t it?