The root causes for Manchester City’s current slump have been widely discussed in recent weeks, with fingers being pointed at injuries, recruitment and individual mistakes.
What is likely true is that the current crisis is a product of many factors, as the run of five defeats that was only ended by Tuesday’s disastrous draw against Feyenoord, is not down to one single reason.
Kevin De Bruyne’s recent injury absence and staggered return to first-team football has undoubtably had an impact on the side’s recent fortunes and boss Pep Guardiola will no doubt be desperate to have a fully fit and firing De Bruyne back in his starting line-up.
The 33-year-old’s recent hamstring issue comes after a season which saw him miss 17 Premier League games through injury last season, while the playmaker’s contract at City continues to tick down, with De Bruyne set to enter the final six months of his deal in January.
Kevin De Bruyne’s three options laid out
De Bruyne made it clear earlier this week that he is yet to make a decision on his future, when he spoke ahead of the Feyenoord clash to reveal that talks on his future had been put to one side following his most recent injury.
“Talks will come, if no talks come it will be my last year,” he said. “I just want to play good football.”
A report in The Athletic now claims that De Bruyne now has three options as he ponders where his future lies.
| Competition | Seasons won |
| Premier League | 2017/18, 2018/19, 2020/21, 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24 |
| FA Cup | 2018/19, 2022/23 |
| League Cup | 2015/16, 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21 |
| Champions League | 2022/23 |
They claim he could extend his contract at City for a further year, which would take up him up to his 35th birthday or move abroad to either Saudi Arabia or the MLS.
Should he chose to remain at the Etihad for another 12 months, he would likely then go on to either the Saudi Pro League with PIF-backed clubs Al Nassr or Al Ahli the strongest options, or to America, where ‘most teams would jump at the chance to sign him’.
San Diego FC, a new team that will join the league next year, have been heavily linked with De Bruyne over the past few months and are said to be ‘optimistic’ about signing the Man City star.
Guardiola on De Bruyne’s future
Guardiola, who extended his stay at City earlier month, also addressed the issue of De Bruyne’s future this week, insisting that he backs his skipper to know when the time is right to move on.
“He wants to finish here at his best,” said Guardiola.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 12 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 8 | 16 | 31 |
| 2 |  Man CityManchester City | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 22 | 17 | 5 | 23 |
“I don’t think he will be here when he believes he doesn’t feel he can be the Kevin that can produce and help the team like he has done in the last decade.”
But before any decisions are made, De Bruyne will be focused on ending City’s barren run when they take on Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday. HIs 22-minute cameo off the bench against Feyenoord was the longest of his four substitute appearances since his injury lay-off as he looks to get up to full speed.
