Kevin De Bruyne remains in the spotlight at Manchester City – almost a month on from his exit announcement.
The Belgian took to social media on April 4th to share the news of his imminent departure from the Etihad Stadium, with many details emerging since.
De Bruyne has revealed Manchester City made the decision – not him – admitting he found the call to be a “surprising” one after almost a decade in M11.
Manchester City fans were furious to hear it was a decision made without consulting the Belgium international, while Thierry Henry was also left saddened by the news.
Some have accused Manchester City of being pretty ruthless – although there is one detail about Kevin De Bruyne which nobody seems to be addressing.
£400,000-a-week wages surely made this decision easy for Manchester City
In an ideal world, Manchester City would let the 33-year-old leave on his own terms.
However, one thing nobody seems to be talking about is the fact De Bruyne earns £400,000-a-week at the Etihad Stadium, making him the highest earner in the Premier League behind Erling Haaland, who receives £525,000-a-week.
The man born in Drongen turns 34 in June, and only has ten goal involvements in 24 Premier League appearances this season, which makes it hard to justify extending such an expensive contract.
Manchester City are also hoping to sign Florian Wirtz in a lucrative move from Bayer Leverkusen this summer – which will require a significant financial outlay with the German valued at £100m – so this potential transfer may not even be possible if De Bruyne stays, due to PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules) in the Premier League.
The Manchester City No.17 could well have taken a pay cut, although those in the boardroom possibly believed that even a £200,000-a-week deal would be pricey in the circumstances, and potentially felt it disrespectful to offer a 50% decrease in wages to a club legend.
Ultimately, if De Bruyne earned a more modest salary – relatively speaking – in the region of £100,000 every week, we believe Manchester City would have let him stay and dictate the terms of his exit.
Manchester City could free up a fortune in wages this summer
De Bruyne is not the only high earner who could leave Manchester City this summer.
Jack Grealish is up for sale, and is believed to earn £300,000-a-week at the Etihad Stadium.
Manchester City are also ready to sell John Stones, who makes £250,000-a-week, while Bernardo Silva is another who could depart, and the Portugal international receives £300,000-a-week.
Just from this trio, Hugo Viana could save £850,000-a-week on the wage bill, and including De Bruyne, a huge chunk of £1.25m would be saved, which could be used to lure some of the greatest talents of the next generation to Manchester this summer, like Wirtz.
