AHEAD OF THE GAME: Harry Kane’s contract with no release clause was negotiated by his old agent

Harry Kane’s brother Charlie has been widely criticised for his handling of the England captain’s attempt to leave Tottenham this summer. 

But he was not responsible for the six-year contract that gave the club such a strong hand and ultimately led to their talismanic striker staying in north London. 

Kane’s contract was negotiated by his previous representatives, Unique Sports Management, who were unable to secure a release clause when that deal was signed in the build-up to the 2018 World Cup. 

Kane subsequently left USM to join the agency set up by his brother, CK66 Player Management, for whom he is their only known client. 

Charlie Kane (top right) was not responsible for negotiating his brother Harry’s six-year deal

The contract dealt Tottenham a strong hand as they warded off interest from Manchester City

Mind the gap! Top four keep splashing the cash on wages 

The Premier League’s top four are threatening to break further away from the rest of the top flight in terms of spending power, with none of their rivals willing to sanction wages in excess of £100,000 a week this summer. 

Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea were already well clear in the wages league and the gap appears to be widening as the financial impact of the pandemic begins to be felt. 

Elite clubs like Manchester City and Chelsea are continuing to far outspend most of the league

While fifth-placed payers Arsenal have been active in the market in spending £130million, the club have also made a clear attempt to trim their wage bill, with the largely young players they have signed being offered relatively modest terms. 

Martin Odegaard and Ben White both signed deals worth around £70,000 a week, with Aaron Ramsdale getting around £50,000, while Emile Smith Rowe and Kieran Tierney both signed contract extensions on less than £100,000. 

Tottenham and Everton are keeping a tight rein on wages in contrast to the lavish deals given to the likes of Jack Grealish, Romelu Lukaku — and now Cristiano Ronaldo.

England braced for fan ban after Wembley chaos 

The FA will discover next week if England will be forced to play one of their UEFA Nations League matches behind closed doors at Wembley later this season as punishment for the crowd disturbances that marred the European Championship final.

The governing body were hit with four separate charges by UEFA relating to misconduct by fans at Wembley before and during England’s penalty shootout defeat to Italy, with potential punishments ranging from a fine, a suspended stadium closure to a ban on fans attending national team matches. 

England’s first five games of the season are all World Cup qualifiers run by FIFA so any stadium closure would apply to the start of their next UEFA Nations League campaign next spring.

English fans remain in the dark over travel rules 

Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United fans are still in the dark about whether they will be able to attend Champions League away matches this season after Thursday’s draw threw up several mouth-watering ties. 

Chelsea and City fans, in particular, would ordinarily have begun planning exciting trips to watch their teams face Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, but UEFA have yet to decide whether away fans will be permitted to attend. 

Manchester City fans hope to witness a repeat of last season’s win at Paris Saint-Germain

The European governing body prohibited travelling support from the qualifying rounds this summer and that ban could be extended to the group stages. 

FIFA have opted to prevent travelling fans from attending next month’s World Cup qualifiers, which has denied England fans trips to Hungary and Poland.

Hammers not pitch perfect 

West Ham have taken prompt action to try and improve the quality of their pitch, which was shown up as substandard in front of a live television audience during Monday’s Premier League win over Leicester, by bolstering their groundstaff.

The club are seeking to add two more members to head groundsman Dougie Robertson’s team at the London Stadium, where the playing surface has appeared patchy for some time after Sportsmail revealed it had suffered an outbreak of fungus earlier this year. 

Manager David Moyes has welcomed the club’s attempt to give his side better playing conditions, although the state of the pitch did not stop them thrashing Leicester 4-1 to go top of the table.

West Ham have taken prompt action to try and improve the quality of their pitch in East London