COMMENT: Whether it's teammates, staff or the chairman - if there's any anger inside Tottenham with Harry Kane, they need only look themselves in the mirror to understand his actions this week.

No written transfer request has been submitted. No verbal warning made. But Kane didn't need to, the England captain - at least those within his camp - instead leaning on trusted intermediaries within the London press to get the message out. Tottenham's biggest name; their biggest asset; wants to leave - and as soon as he can.

The story was all but confirmed by Tottenham's reaction on Tuesday morning. A spokesman delivering a terse response, with a barb fired at the man in question.

“We won't be commenting – our focus is on finishing the season as strongly as possible," declared the comms rep. "That's what everyone should be focused on."

No need to read between the lines with this one. The salvo fired back was easy to decipher - focus on the games in front of you, not your planning this summer. Which is a bit rich coming from this club and this board.

After all, it wasn't Kane who had Jose Mourinho fired just days out from a League Cup final. And it wasn't Kane who chose to replace Mourinho with the most inexperienced, green rookie on the club's coaching staff.

Indeed, we're still waiting for an explanation over this farce of a decision. As is Kane. No-one from the higher ups has explained to their biggest name - and Mourinho's biggest supporter - why it was good for the club to remove the Portuguese days out from a Cup final. And moreso, why it was believed Ryan Mason was the better option facing Pep Guardiola and Manchester City that Sunday.

But this is Spurs all over. And no we're not going into a 'Spursy' rant here. That's Micky Mouse stuff. This is still the club of Nicholson, Perryman and Greaves. It's still the club which dominated Cup competitions in the 80's with Graham Roberts at the back. Those foundations are still there. It's about today's decision-makers and how they've failed to see through projects that promised so much.

While teammates chuckle Kane says farewell to Spurs fans after defeat to Aston Villa

As Levy's open letter published Wednesday highlighted, Spurs were top of the table as late as December. Goals were flying in from all corners and all positions. No-one was complaining about the football being played at that stage. But there were complaints. Leaks. Those players not getting a game couldn't help themselves. Mourinho's man-management, even with the club top of the table, was being pulled apart in the press. And significantly was being granted an audience by Levy.

So when Kane went down injured. When other frontliners were forced out. Instead of the squad pulling together and working their way through this difficulty, the leaks and complaints instead multiplied. All from the dressing room. All from the training pitch. This wasn't the stuff of serious pros working towards serious goals. The moles that Mourinho had identified last summer and urged Levy to move on were having a field day. The chairman had his chance to change the culture in the dressing room. But he bottled it. And when it came time for team and management to come together and battle through that inevitable form blip, it all came back to bite them.

But Mourinho's demise was no one-off. The same happened with Mauricio Pochettino. The first sign of trouble. The first serious slump. And the Argentine was axed. Levy going for the sack option and changing course over sticking to a project that had shown great, great promise.

Which was exactly what we were seeing under Mourinho. Spurs, as they stood in December, were threatening to become the next 'it' club. The next to break into the very elite of Europe. They had England's captain. They had France's captain. They had the most popular player in Heung-min Son across all of Asia. They had Gareth Bale back and on the road to career recovery. And they had the lightening rod that is Jose Mourinho. They had it all. And it was being played out in their new stadium.

But instead of staying the course, Levy melted. As was confirmed by this open letter.

No mention of trophies. Indeed, no mention of Mourinho. Instead the chairman declared: "We are acutely aware of the need to select someone whose values reflect those of our great club and return to playing football with the for which we are known – free-flowing, attacking and entertaining – whilst continuing to embrace our desire to see young players flourish from our Academy alongside experienced talent."

So "free-flowing"... or better yet, flowery football. With a flowery manager and flowery players. Nice. Neat. And non-threatening. Doing just enough to "compete" for trophies, without making the necessary sacrifices to actually win one.

The sort of approach which has Mason happily taking the plaudits for recalling Dele Alli. Watching him make headlines in the gossip pages with Guardiola's daughter. Selecting him for Aston Villa. And getting beaten at home.

Yeah, that Spurs. The Spurs where such things don't really matter. The leaks. The collapses. The failures. Year upon year, they just roll one into the other. Until you're almost 28 and realise nothing's going to change.

Which is what hit Kane between the eyes that week before Wembley. Manchester United had ample opportunities to sack Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but didn't. Even Guardiola admitted nerves after a trophyless first season with City - though his concerns were unfounded. The boards of both Manchester clubs having enough faith in their long-term plan to stick with the man in charge. Indeed, would either manager still be in their respective jobs if Levy and Joe Lewis were controlling things...?

So Kane's had enough. Since the New Year, the actions taken haven't been of a serious football club. And at almost 28, he doesn't have the time to gamble with Levy and Lewis actually being good to their word this time around.

So when Kane does go direct about wanting out of the club, no-one at Spurs should be angry. They need only look in the mirror to know why he's had enough.