Manchester United has impressed this year, winning their first trophy in six years with a victory over Newcastle United in the League Cup final at Wembley in February. They still have a chance to win all four of the competitions they entered this year.

However, Erik ten Hag still needs to improve. A move for Harry Kane, the captain of Tottenham Hotspur, has been suggested as the team appears to need a world-class striker to give them the 30 goals per season boost that could make them legitimate Premier League title contenders.

The Daily Mail reports that United is interested in signing the Englishman at the end of the current campaign, and there is little doubt that the marksman would improve their offensive unit.

The £85 million that Spurs have placed on his value may be too high for the Dutchman to spend. In fact, young attacker Joe Hugill has recently impressed, suggesting that the manager may already have his response to Kane in the United academy.

The person Joe Hugill.

In 2020, United acquired the young player from Sunderland, and he has flourished for the squad, particularly given his stellar performance in the younger teams.

The 19-year-old could be the pure striker that Ten Hag is looking for. During his time with the Red Devils, he has scored 40 goals in 69 games for the U18, U19, and U21 teams.

He has been compared to Kane because of the way he plays. Hugill isn’t the fastest player, but he is equally tall (6 foot 2) as the Spurs hitman and has good aerial skills. He also knows exactly where the goal is.

Similar to Kane, he has strong link-up play and the ability to hold the ball up, and the upcoming 12 months may be a turning point in his development.

Hugill has scored 44 goals in 77 youth games for his club, which works out to a goal every 1.75 games compared to Kane’s 1.7 goals per game in his career. This suggests that the youngster has the potential to be a prolific scorer.

Late last year, the striker’s U18 manager, Travis Binnion, gushed about him, saying: “So for his first two games back [from injury] to be against Real Betis and Bolton’s first team, he’s been thrown in the deep end, and he’s done OK. He deserves and needs a little bit of fortune since he will only get better.

The fact that Ten Hag has given opportunities to young players like Alejandro Garnacho, Anthony Elanga, and Facundo Pellistri this season may have helped the teen prodigy, and since the Dutchman obviously needs another central attacking option, Hugill may just be the next player to make his senior debut.

Thus, by unleashing the young center-forward the following season, the head coach may find his own version of Kane while also saving the club £85 million.