Kevin De Bruyne | Appreciation thread

[Johnny Mars Bar]

I thought Gundogan decided to leave which is why they were happy to take him back? May be mis-remembering ...

I think Gundo wanted a longer new deal than city were willing to offer?

 

[Johnny Mars Bar]

Think he still feels that when fit, within a top PL team he can provide enough goals & assists in defining moments that can warrant a starting position. He's confirmed that his family is happy and settled in Manchester. If that's how he feels
then playing for Liverpool and staying in NW will
tick some of his boxes. Ake is a good mate so if
Ake remains in NW @ City next season maybe thats another tick?

There is no way Kev taints his legacy at city by signing for Liverpool.

 

[Johnny Mars Bar]

Did he? From what I have seen, he has been saying ghe exact opposite. And using the recent games as an example.

People are also readily assuming he would happily at least halve his wages, but again, he said no such thing.

If my current employer offered to half my wages but some company in Chicago offered to triple them, I’d be off like a shot to buy a MAGA hat, a cheeseburger, a pickup truck and a rifle.

Yeeee haw!

 

[IrishBloodEnglishHeart]

True, but they might feel very settled in the area as a family. From KDB’s point of view City don’t want him and if Liverpool do it’s probably a no brainer. He owes us fuck all

He owes us fuck all?!

Absolutely mental when our own fans think this. There wasn't a queue of teams when he was at Wolfsburg and we actually got the piss taken out of us for spending "so much" on him. We took that risk.
We've given him the opportunity to come and work for the best club the in world over the last 8 years or so. He's been treated well and looked after by the club (look at Gundo's experience in Barca and the way they treated him). He's come here and won everything there is to win. There's not many other teams he could have gone to and had the same experience as with City. When you hear former players talk about the club and how well they're looked after, and you see it on the behind the scenes videos - to say "he owes us fuck all" is stupid.

This isnt anything new. Sergio was treated in the exact same way - he wanted to stay but we knew the time was right for him to leave. He didn't consider even moving to another Premier League club - imagine if he'd ended up going to United. He went abroad and he got a statue built.

 

[mcfc315]

Liverpool have just re-signed salah and van dijk for a combined £800,000 a week, if Kev was to go to there that would easily make their wage bill for 3 players all over the age of 33 on over £1m a week... doesn't make any business sense wise

 

[come-on-barney]

What’s to play in the World Cup, therefore needs to be playing at the highest level. That’s what it’s about nothing more.

 

[IrishBloodEnglishHeart]

What’s to play in the World Cup, therefore needs to be playing at the highest level. That’s what it’s about nothing more.

Not true. There's plenty of players playing for Belgium that aren't playing at the "highest level".

 

[come-on-barney]

Not true. There's plenty of players playing for Belgium that aren't playing at the "highest level".

With his age and injuries that will be a factor, when they make a decision. Kev said it himself he wants to play in the World Cup.

 

[Matt Diablo]

He owes us fuck all?!

Absolutely mental when our own fans think this. There wasn't a queue of teams when he was at Wolfsburg and we actually got the piss taken out of us for spending "so much" on him. We took that risk.
We've given him the opportunity to come and work for the best club the in world over the last 8 years or so. He's been treated well and looked after by the club (look at Gundo's experience in Barca and the way they treated him). He's come here and won everything there is to win. There's not many other teams he could have gone to and had the same experience as with City. When you hear former players talk about the club and how well they're looked after, and you see it on the behind the scenes videos - to say "he owes us fuck all" is stupid.

This isnt anything new. Sergio was treated in the exact same way - he wanted to stay but we knew the time was right for him to leave. He didn't consider even moving to another Premier League club - imagine if he'd ended up going to United. He went abroad and he got a statue built.

Were Serg's family settled and brought up in Manc. No

 

[hampshireblue]

Come on City, give him another year.

 

[ManCitizens.]

Seems everyone is missing the point here. A year older Kev going to Liverpool makes them worse, not better. Much worse. Perhaps this is his final parting gift :)

And I would fully expect even if he comes back to the Etihad and scores a hatrick against us he would still get a standing ovation.

He’s leaving at the bottom not the top.

Maybe they can take Bernie and Gundo whilst they’re at it!

No he doesn’t. He’s certainly a better squad player than the likes of Curtis Jones in midfield.

Our issue is we’ve had too many older players playing together at once. At that lot he’d have a younger midfield doing the running for him. I’m still adamant KDB could offer us a lot as a bit part experienced player. The issue is it seems Gundogan has already got that spot and playing both together will cost us games (as seen this season).

Really hope he doesn’t go to the scousers.

 

[robbieh]

For me he's still the one player with that bit of magic the others don't possess. He should have been offered a one year deal on reduced salary. I'm sure he'd have taken it.

 

[Marvin.]

Come on City, give him another year.

It will be sad to say goodbye but it's necessary. Ask yourself if KDB can play at the level we saw in the CL semi-finals.

 

[HelloCity]

Remember when United panicked and resigned Ronaldo because they thought he was going to City?

We ended up with Haaland and they ended up, well…

 

[alexmcity]

For me he's still the one player with that bit of magic the others don't possess. He should have been offered a one year deal on reduced salary. I'm sure he'd have taken it.

Where was the magic against the big teams this season?

I'd say his last truly magical performance was against Newcastle away 16 months ago. He was excellent vs. Palace (a bottom half team) recently and that's it, unless we include games vs rubbish teams.

 

[Marvin.]

For me he's still the one player with that bit of magic the others don't possess. He should have been offered a one year deal on reduced salary. I'm sure he'd have taken it.

That's true but his overall game is no longer good enough. The moments are increasingly rare and tend to come in games against weaker opponents where he has time and space on the ball. I am hoping we qualify for the Champions League next season. He simply cannot play at that level. I saw that that this season, let alone next when he will be 34.

If City want to challenge for the title next season and the Champions League, we need to replace KDB in the squad.

 

[bluetonium]

I'm coming round more and more to the idea that this season was a blip, a coming together of almost every possible worst scenario, and we still come out of it smelling pretty fresh.

Maybe the panic was an overreaction. Maybe we're not in need of the overhaul we all demanded in January. A 34 year old Kev is still a player who can do things that others can't, and no way he has the toxic attitude around him that Ronaldo had at United. Far from it, he'd be a inspiration plus I'd expect he'd accept a bench role too.

If we brought in Wirtz, resigned Kev and brought in at least one full back I'd be very optimistic about our chances for next season. Let's not underestimate what we are already, and adding a returning Rodri and Bobb to that is an exciting prospect.

 

[PragueBlue]

Come on City, give him another year.

We have an aging midfield with KdB, Kovacic, Gundogan and Bernardo and this has been one of the reasons for our struggles this season. Each of them is going to need replacing over the next year or so. Unless we can find buyers for them, they'll just have to leave when their contracts expire. It just so happens that KdB's is the first to expire.

I certainly hope that we don't offer him another year (unless 2 or 3 of the above mentioned are leaving). We need a complete rebuild of midfield and that can't happen while we still have all of these older players on our books. Otherwise we are in for another similar season.

 

[Brendan110_0]

It's time, no matter who he goes to. Just like Aguero.

 

[oldius]

An all-time great, a legend, but not the player he was because he has given everything he had to give to us. It is time to say goodbye, and remember him as a great, not someone who stayed too long. We owe him that.