Ex-Tottenham boss 'told Daniel Levy to sign two Chelsea players' during Harry Kane exit talks

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Harry Kane was linked with Manchester City in the summer of 2021 but the prolific striker eventually stayed put at Tottenham

David Pleat has revealed he previously advised Daniel Levy to bring Cole Palmer and Liam Delap to Tottenham during the summer of 2021.

England had reached the final of Euro 2020, eventually falling short to Italy on penalties, and Manchester City were flirting with the prospect of signing Harry Kane. Instead, they opted to land Jack Grealish from Aston Villa in a British-record £100million transfer.

However, Pleat has now revealed during the period where speculation over Kane's future was rife, he made it clear that Palmer and Delap - then at City's academy - were two attacking prospects worth signing.

He told Tippy Tappy Pod : “When Man City signed Grealish for £100m, that was the end of Harry Kane going to them. But, according to Daniel, they never picked up the phone. It was all paper talk, that £150m.

"I told Daniel at the time, ‘If you get whatever you think he's worth or eventually agree, make sure you get two players from Man City's academy, Delap and Palmer."

Delap later joined Ipswich Town before moving to Stamford Bridge while Palmer joined the Blues in the summer of 2023 for £42.5m.

Pleat, who previously had three different spells as Tottenham's caretaker boss, left his scouting role at Spurs in 2024. He also previously operated as the club's sporting director.

While Kane did stay put in 2021, he eventually left north London in 2023 to sign for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.

Speaking in 2024, Pleat revealed his two favourite signings while at Tottenham. He told The View From The Lane podcast: “I was very happy to bring in Jermain Defoe, and I was very happy to bring in Mr Keane from Leeds United.

"The last one before I left and came back again was the goalkeeper, [Paul] Robinson, he went on to play for England. In more recent times, Dele Alli, I watched Son [Heung-min] and I watched [Christian] Eriksen twice in Holland.”