Manchester City fans could well be bidding farewell to Kevin De Bruyne later this year, as speculation continues to swirl about his future at the club.
It has been a season of struggle for Manchester City as a collective, and also for Kevin De Bruyne on a personal level.
The star’s recent injury issues have seen him fail to get to the incredibly high level City fans have been used to seeing him at, and there is just a feeling now that we could be seeing his final months at the Etihad Stadium.
It was recently claimed that De Bruyne would be open to a bit-part role at Man City.
But De Bruyne has interest from the MLS, specifically San Diego FC, and Saudi Arabia, which would allow him to play at a lower intensity and likely for more money than if he stayed put at City.
In recent days, it was also suggested that City have already decided to offload De Bruyne, and his time is over.
Now, top journalist Fabrizio Romano has shared what he knows of the situation.
Man City have not told Kevin De Bruyne they definitely don’t want him, but exit is likely
Manchester City could offload seven senior players this summer, and De Bruyne was mentioned as one of those players.
In recent days, there has been some suggestion that City have already told De Bruyne that he will definitely be departing in the summer, rather than extend his contract.
But Romano has delivered an update on the Belgian maestro, saying on Market Madness: “I think there is a really concrete possibility. I’m told that it’s not true what was reported in recent days about Man City already telling Kevin De Bruyne, okay, it’s over, you must go. We are not going to extend the contract.
“They didn’t have this sort of conversation. Now, then in the next weeks and months, for sure they will discuss the agent, the player, the club. But the feeling internally at Man City is that there is a strong possibility to see Kevin De Bruyne leaving, trying a new experience, there is interest from MLS since a long time.
“He’s always been appreciated there and obviously from Saudi. We still remember those quotes from Kevin almost one year ago when he was mentioning the big salary offered from Saudi as something that can change life of the whole family and not just himself. So that’s why I think for Kevin De Bruyne, there are several opportunities.
“And at the moment, there is a really strong and concrete possibility to see him and more players at Man City living in the summer.”
Who could Man City replace De Bruyne with?
So from this information from Romano, even though City haven’t told the player anything yet, the likelihood is that De Bruyne will be leaving in the summer.
And there are probably a lot of City fans who now feel that this would be the right outcome.
As amazing as it would be for De Bruyne to play another season, he has been on the decline recently and there’s been little evidence to suggest it won’t continue.
He’s struggled to influence games this season in the same way as years gone by, and it wouldn’t be nice to see him become a shadow of his former self.
| Kevin De Bruyne for Man City (2015-present) |
| Appearances – 405 |
| Goals – 109 |
| Assists – 173 |
| Trophies – 16 |
City are working on potential replacements.
Apparently, Man City have approached Florian Wirtz about a potential summer move – and that would be a very exciting signing indeed.
Man City have also been linked with Jamal Musiala in the past, and the German would be another really exciting option.
Given his incredible output in a City shirt over the years though, replacing De Bruyne could be an impossible task.
