Harry Kane's future at Tottenham Hotspur is constantly under intense speculation, with Manchester United and Real Madrid both reportedly interested in signing the England striker ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.
Spurs have just announced Ange Postecoglou as the club's new manager, though, hired on a four-year deal to highlight the backing he will receive while in charge at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And while Kane is Spurs' talisman, having been the team's standout performer in the past decade, there is a case to argue that Postecoglou might be better off without the 29-year-old sticking around.
But why would Kane leaving Tottenham be beneficial for the incoming Australian, especially after he just scored 30 Premier League goals?
Firstly, the signing of a four-year contract indicates Spurs are planning for the future with Postecoglou, opting for a change of tact that has recently seen them appoint Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte.
Kane has just a year remaining on his contract, though, throwing any plans Postecoglou may have into jeopardy because he can't feasibly build a team around Kane when there is the risk he'll lose the striker on a free at the end of next season anyway.
What's more, Manchester United and Real Madrid are reportedly willing to pay up to £100 million for Kane - a huge sum of money for a player who has just 12 months left on his current deal. The money can also enable Postecoglou to build a squad he wants, rather than be handed a shoe-string budget limiting his options.
While Tottenham have proven in the past such a large transfer fee isn't always spent wisely, most notably highlighted 10 years ago when they sold Gareth Bale and replaced him with the likes of Paulinho, Roberto Soldado and Etienne Capoue, there is reason to suggest chairman Daniel Levy will have learnt his lesson.
Sure, they will need a goalscorer to replace Kane if he does leave, but there's a major rebuild job that is underway at Spurs. Out of European competition for the first time since 2009/10, Postecoglou will have plenty of time on the training pitch to develop his squad and coach them in his style of play.
Perhaps the most important aspect to consider, though, is that a long, drawn out summer of protracted negotiations over Kane certainly won't benefit Spurs in any way possible. The new manager will need to know immediately which players he has at his disposable, because otherwise he will be preparing for the new season without clarity on if the club's star player will still be there in September.
Indeed, planning will already be underway - if Kane's future remains up in the air until the transfer deadline of September 1, that's nearly four months of speculation that the Australian boss will have to deal with that he could be using more wisely.
Spurs fans won't want to hear it, but it's better to just cut the chord and move on without their record goalscorer, for the benefit of all parties involved.
