Harry Kane to Man Utd chances rated as Ratcliffe considers seven options to replace Martial

Manchester United are going to be in the market for a new number nine in the summer and Sir Jim Ratcliffe already has several targets in mind.

With Anthony Martial set to leave at the end of the season, the striker department is an obvious area where the club can look to improve.

While Rasmus Hojlund has proven his worth since the turn of the year with eight goals in his last eight matches, he’s still very much a work in progress.

The club will be keen to bolster their attacking ranks and give players like Hojlund some much-needed competition at the top end of the pitch.

We’ve taken a closer look at seven of the striker targets that United have been linked with in recent months and have assessed their chances of joining the Red Devils.

Harry Kane

Despite only joining Bayern Munich last summer, there’s already plenty of speculation surrounding Kane’s long-term future in the Bundesliga.

The England captain looks set to miss out on the title this season, with Bayer Leverkusen currently boasting a 10-point lead at the top of the table.

Reports have indicated that the 30-year-old isn’t entirely happy with his situation at the Allianz Arena which could open the door for sides like United to swoop in.

Kane is under contract until 2027 and in order to prize him out of Germany, clubs will likely have to match the €100m plus fee that Bayern Munich originally spent on him.

The idea of Kane at Old Trafford is an incredibly exciting prospect, but is it realistic? According to transfer insider Dean Jones, United would be prepared to do everything possible to make the deal happen, but it will likely be a tricky transfer to pull off.

“Let’s face it, there is very little sign at the moment of Man Utd signing a player for mega money,” Jones told Give Me Sport.

“They would do everything possible to make it happen if they saw potential, but it’s hugely difficult to do.”

It seems feasible that in order for this transfer to happen, Kane himself would have to push for the deal. With United being unlikely to be in the Champions League next season, this transfer seems like a pipedream for the time being.

Ivan Toney

The Brentford forward is likely to be on the move this summer and United have been among the sides sniffing around the 27-year-old.

Like Kane, Toney also has a proven track record in the Premier League, but he’s likely to come at a premium cost. Despite being out of contract in 2025, the Bees will be looking for upwards of £80m for their talisman.

Man Utd will also have to fend off the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea if they want to get this deal over the line. While this could be a tricky deal to manoeuvre, the upside with Toney is absolutely huge.

He averages a Premier League goal every 185 minutes and his link-up play would be a great asset for Erik ten Hag’s side to utilise.

United legend Andy Cole thinks that Toney would be a sensible pick-up, as he told Betfred: “I like Ivan and if he came to Manchester United, would he do a job? Absolutely he would. It all depends on what direction the club wants to go in.”

From the outside looking in, Toney seems like the sort of striker that would be a hit at Old Trafford, but is the move realistic? As things stand, United don’t seem to be at the front of the queue for his signature, but things could develop in the coming months.

Joshua Zirkzee

Zirkzee is less of a household name than the likes of Kane and Toney, but he’s perhaps a more realistic option for United this summer.

The 22-year-old came through the Bayern Munich academy and has spent the last two years playing for Bologna in Serie A. He’s currently enjoying a solid goalscoring season with 10 goals in 27 league matches.

Impressively, he’s overperformed his xG by 1.6 goals this season and he’s also created 38 chances for his teammates which is more than any other Bologna player has managed.

Reports from the Italian press have indicated that Bologna are looking for around €80m (£68.3m) for their prized asset. Given he’s under contract until 2026, the Italian side does have a decent amount of bargaining power this summer.

It’s also worth noting that Bayern Munich do have a buy-back clause on Zirkzee which is worth €40m. However, it doesn’t seem likely that they will trigger that option at this stage.

Both Arsenal and Tottenham have been sniffing around Zirkzee of late, but United do stand a decent chance of getting this deal done if they are willing to pay Bologna’s asking price.

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Mathys Tel

The teenage forward is one of the most exciting prospects in Europe right now. According to Sky Sports Germany, United have ‘already discussed Tel internally’ and have ‘made contact’ over the prospect of signing him in the summer.

With Kane firmly ahead of him in the pecking order at Bayern Munich, the majority of his minutes have come from the bench this season.

Given his limited minutes, he’s done well to score so many goals. Across all competitions, Tel has scored seven goals and is averaging a strike every 127 minutes.

According to Tel’s agent Gadiri Camara, the striker enjoys life at Bayern Munich, but his client will consider his future if they aren’t on the same page.

“Mathys loves the club, the fans, he wants to be important and win all the trophies here with a strong team,” Camara told Bild.

“Sometimes you just need to feel like you’re on the same path. We’ll see very soon, but I’m confident. But if not, we have to consider all options because Mathys knows that he is valuable and will be a top player.”

The 18-year-old is under contract until 2029 so prizing him out of Bayern Munich will likely be tough. For the time being, it seems like United will explore alternative options.

Serhou Guirassy

The Red Devils’ interest in Guirassy dates back a few months. For Stuttgart this season, the 28-year-old has been in the form of his life with 21 Bundesliga goals in just 19 appearances.

According to Sky Deutschland journalist Florian Plettenberg, United were ‘very interested’ in Guirassy back in December, but the club ultimately opted against moving for him in January.

Fast forward to the summer and there’s every chance that the club resurfaces their interest. As confirmed by Fabrizio Romano, Guirassy’s €17.5m release clause will be active in the summer.

The likes of Tottenham and West Ham have also been sniffing around the Stuttgart forward, but United will probably fancy their chances of getting this deal done, given his astonishingly cheap release clause.

Lois Openda

Back in December, TEAMtalk sources confirmed that United are interested in Openda. The 24-year-old has been in fine form this season, scoring 17 goals and providing four assists in the Bundesliga.

RB Leipzig signed the Belgium forward last summer from Lens in a deal worth around £39m including add-ons. Fast forward to the upcoming window and it would take considerably more than that to prize him out of Germany.

Interestingly, Openda does have a £70m release clause in his contract, but this only becomes valid in the summer of 2025.

That means it could take a gigantic fee to land his signature ahead of next season. United would fancy their chances of turning Openda’s head, but they will perhaps be inclined to wait until his release clause becomes active.

Jonathan David

Plenty of the signs point towards David joining a Premier League club in the summer. According to transfer journalist Matteo Moretto, ‘several’ Premier League clubs are interested in the Lille forward.

Among those clubs are Man Utd, Tottenham and Brentford. David has enjoyed another solid scoring season in France, with 21 goals across all competitions up until this point.

With his contract at Lille set to expire in 2025, the French club could see this summer as the ideal time to cash in, particularly with so many clubs taking an interest in him.

Compared to some of the other names being linked with United, David seems like a realistic target. INEOS already have a good understanding of the French league and David would tick plenty of boxes for the Red Devils.

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