Tottenham Hotspur are facing a genuinely difficult summer.

Spurs have been in remarkably poor form under manager Jose Mourinho and were beaten by Sheffield United on Thursday.

Their 3-1 defeat at Bramall Lane leaves them ninth in the Premier League table and they are 10 points behind fifth-placed Manchester United and 12 behind fourth-placed Chelsea.

It leaves their chances of qualifying for the Champions League in tatters with just six games of the season remaining and there must surely be a feeling that the squad needs reinvestment in the summer transfer window.

Manager Mourinho may not have all that much money to spend, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It means that exits may have to happen if the Portuguese is to invest.

However, former Spurs star Chris Waddle does not expect Harry Kane to leave this summer, though he believes that he could well depart after the 2020/21 season if Spurs’ struggles continue.

Per Racing Post via The London Evening Standard, he said: “It’s been an unsettled year but I get the feeling Kane may give it another season at Tottenham and then take a long look at his options.

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“It's a big year now the Euros have been rearranged and it could take 12 months for everything to settle down and for clubs to have a good look at their finances. The stupid money is just not going to be about.

“So Harry could bide his time but he will want to see things improve in the meantime, and then where will Spurs be? They will be back to being a club who might finish fourth or might finish seventh and will be seen as one that sells its best players.

“Mourinho tends to stick around for three seasons and move on, but I don't know what better offer he is going to get than the job he has now."

GIVEMESPORT’S Harry Sherlock says…

The striker is a world-class talent.

Kane has scored 183 goals in 281 games for the club, while also registering 30 assists, and one has to wonder whether he will be at all willing to stay at the club if their struggles continue.

He is 26 and approaching his prime but he may feel that he is wasting his time if he is not playing Champions League football.

It would take a genuine fortune to take Kane away from the club – he is valued at £108 million by Transfermarkt – and he is tied to the club until 2024.

But an exit could happen if he forces his way out; if European qualification eludes them again next term, it feels as though it might be a tragic inevitability.