Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino refuses to rule out move for Tottenham’s Harry Kane

Mauricio Pochettino refused to categorically rule out a move for Harry Kane – only insisting ‘at the moment we are thinking in different ways’ – as he attempted to sidestep the subject.

England captain and Tottenham talisman Kane has a year left on his current contract.

Spurs insist Kane is not for sale with chairman Daniel Levy especially reluctant to let him join one of the north Londoners’ Premier League rivals.

Next summer though Levy will be unable to prevent Kane joining who he wants if the striker decides to run down his contract and leave on a free transfer.

Pochettino has been appointed Chelsea’s new head coach with his Spurs history no longer proving an obstacle to him taking over at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues head coach refused to rule out a move for the forward in his first press conference

Kane has been heavily linked with a move to Bayern Munich this summer to join Thomas Tuchel

The rivalry between the two clubs has long been cited as a major reason why Kane could not make the same move.

But the presence at Chelsea of the manager he has previously thrived under has raised the prospect of a potential reunion between the pair and what would be an audacious and controversial swoop from the Blues.

Pochettino said: ‘I don’t like to talk about players in another club, but you are talking about one of the greatest, one of the best strikers in the world.

‘It’s not fair to talk, it’s not fair to say nothing. People are not stupid, fans are not stupid, they are so clever and they know my relationship with him was always amazing. I saw him when he was young, grow up and achieve all he was achieving and of course we have a great relationship.

‘At the moment we are thinking in different ways. We are not thinking about that. Of course working hard to try to provide the squad with good qualities.

‘I don’t like to talk about players and, more than that, players who were close to me.’