Erik ten Hag makes Harry Kane transfer admission after failed Manchester United pursuit

Erik ten Hag has openly admitted he wanted to sign Harry Kane last summer but he is confident Rasmus Hojlund could reach a similar level later in his career.

Manchester United pursued the 30-year-old last summer before moving onto other targets when it became clear Tottenham would not sell their talisman to a domestic rival. He eventually join Bayern Munich in a deal worth an initial £82 million.

Kane was Ten Hag's preferred option for the striker position, while Hojlund, 21, was viewed as a highly-talented youngster who could potentially reach a world-class level if nurtured in the right way. Kane has netted 43 goals in 43 appearances for Bayern Munich already, while Hojlund has netted 14 in 38 appearances.

Ten Hag was always understanding that it would take a while for Hojlund to settle into life at such a big club and while he doesn't want to draw direct comparisons with Kane, he did admit the initial preference was to sign a ready-made goalscorer. "We have had some choices made with talents like Rasmus Hojlund," he told Sky Sports. "I can see a striker who already proved it, who we want to sign and we couldn't get him. And then we went to Rasmus because he's a talent."

When asked if he meant Harry Kane: "Yes, and you know Harry Kane will get you 30 goals. I think Rasmus will get there, but he needs time. It's not fair to assess him the same as Harry Kane. I would never compare two players because they are very different. But with Hojlund, I think we had the biggest potential in the striker position last summer and we are very happy with him. But he also needs time to adapt and we are very pleased he showed his assets in scoring goals.

"He had a very good period where he scored many games after he showed it, but before and after, he had some physical issues, which is normal for a young player coming up. But it has a negative impact on the team result and that's what you have to accept.

"Then you go back to the fans and the opinion makers, and they don't understand or they don't want to understand this. It is how Man United gets judged, they only see the result, but we need time. You have to accept the process is going slower and you can't then expect to straight [away] compete for titles in the Champions League and Premier League."