Three reasons why Pep Guardiola will realise making irrevocable Kevin De Bruyne error | OneFootball

Kevin De Bruyne will be leaving Manchester City in the coming months after announcing his upcoming departure earlier this month – a decision that will come back to haunt Pep Guardiola and officials at the Etihad Stadium.

De Bruyne sent shock waves around the football industry when he took matters into his own hands and put an end to speculation surrounding his future – and the Belgian’s interviews since have given a peak through the curtain into what happened behind the scenes.

The 33-year-old is believed to have voluntarily taken the chance to speak at length with reporters in the mixed zone after leading Manchester City to a hard-fought 2-0 win against Everton against Goodison Park.

His words – reflective of his cutthroat and blunt nature – are indicative of discord between the midfielder and the boardroom over how his future was dealt with, with De Bruyne revealing in many a way his disappointment and shock at no offer from the club to renew his current deal.

It is understood that talks over a new deal were put on hold as the playmaker struggled with recurring injuries for the first half of the season, as is often the case when clubs are dealing with the future(s) of players on the wrong side of 30.

However, a decision has been made and here are three reasons Pep Guardiola and the consortium of Manchester City officials who felt this was the right time to part ways with De Bruyne.

This is Kevin De Bruyne we’re talking about

We’re not talking about any ordinary attacking midfield player who has looked leggy and is just isn’t worth the fuss on the kind of wages he is warranting. Don’t get me wrong – there’d be very few people out there advocating for De Bruyne’s best years being ahead of him.

The six-time Premier League winner is well past his imperious best and the frequency of his marauding runs from midfield – a key hallmark of his excellence and brilliance at City – will witness a downturn as he adapts his game to suit his age and ensure fitness.

However, you only need to look back at Manchester City’s recent thrashing of Crystal Palace to realise what De Bruyne adds to the squad goes well beyond sorcery. City were 2-0 down at home against Oliver Glasner’s side and probably should have been three or four down within 25-30 minutes.

Eberechi Eze’s well-taken finish sent the visitors three ahead before the Englishman was adjudged offside, which really took the stuffing out of the home supporters desperately looking for inspiration and some form of fight from their team.

De Bruyne is still by far City’s best player

City have not been as good going forward this season and that has largely been down to very little creativity in midfield in a side that has been over-reliant on Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden to break the lines over the years.

It took De Bruyne to score a stunning free-kick and wrong foot Dean Henderson to launch a comeback, with the Belgian taking initiative and showing for the ball to make something happen because in the end – if it wasn’t for him, there’d be no one else turning the ship around.

Guardiola knows that. De Bruyne knows that. Erling Haaland knows he will have nowhere near the level of service regardless of who City bring in during the summer. There’s only one Kevin, the Norwegian said it best himself in an emotional social media tribute to his provider-in-chief.

If De Bruyne doesn’t score that free-kick against Palace, there was next to no chance City were creating anything of substance to test Henderson and they would probably have gone three or four down at some point as the game went on, if not in the remainder of the first-half.

What happened? Kevin De Bruyne. What happened 18 months ago when City were 2-1 down away at Newcastle and were in danger of losing further ground in the 2023-24 title race? Kevin De Bruyne. What kept City’s treble run going in 2023? Kevin De Bruyne playing through a hamstring injury until he couldn’t – to go off for the second time in a Champions League final.

Wirtz, Gibss-White? You CANNOT replace De Bruyne

What happened against Arsenal at home in the 2022-23 Premier League race? Kevin De Bruyne. What happened against Aston Villa at home on the last day of the 2021-22 Premier League campaign? If Kevin De Bruyne doesn’t tie his laces tight and wins the ball to play it across the Villa box, there is no Ilkay Gundogan winner.

Players come and go but legends leave their imprint on a club. De Bruyne is not like your Vincent Kompany, he won’t get up on a table at a pub in Manchester and give a victory speech. He isn’t like your Fernandinho, he’ll actually let someone talk. He is Kevin.

He’ll drag you over the line, play through injury and win you a treble and lead by example. He may not talk the talk but he’s the best City have ever had in terms of walking the walk. He’ll go off against Aston Villa after 85 minutes and stay on the touchline to manage City from the other side of the pitch to Pep and his staff.

When the dust settles, when the curtain dawns upon a new season, when Hugo Viana conducts a revamp of the ranks in the summer – there will come a moment of regret at the club. Whatever happens, Manchester City will always need Kevin De Bruyne.