Kevin De Bruyne next club options after leaving Manchester City | OneFootball

The talented Belgian playmaker, who began his career at his boyhood club Genk, had a rocky start in the Premier League with Chelsea before finding his form at Wolfsburg. This led to a second chance with City, a move that transformed his career.

City’s head coach, Pep Guardiola, shares a common sentiment that De Bruyne deserves a statue outside the club’s stadium. This notion goes beyond his impressive statistics, as his impact on the team has been profound.

Since joining in August 2015, De Bruyne has been a crucial factor in City’s unprecedented period of success. While he may not be primarily known for his goal-scoring, he stepped up when needed, but it is his extraordinary playmaking skills that truly set him apart.

His innate ability to control the game’s tempo has solidified his legendary status within the club. However, as with all great careers, this one must also come to an end. Although the announcement of his departure seemed sudden, it felt inevitable, especially considering how he has gradually been phased out of the team. This final campaign has been his least impactful in a City jersey, and injuries have often kept him sidelined for significant periods over recent seasons.

As De Bruyne heads into his final Manchester derby, where he has previously made 20 appearances against United, scoring three goals and creating six assists, it has been a difficult season for him. So far, he has only netted twice and assisted on five goals. In fact, when reviewing his previous seasons in which he played at least 1,000 minutes, these numbers mark his weakest performance in both categories.

While it may seem like he is limping toward the exit, De Bruyne leaves behind a remarkable legacy. “Every story comes to an end, but this has definitely been the best chapter,” he shared on social media. “Football led me to all of you—and to this city. Chasing my dream, I didn’t know that this period would change my life. This city. This club. These people gave me everything. I had no choice but to give everything back. And guess what? We won everything.”

His struggles this season aren’t entirely surprising, as the 33-year-old has played just 1,102 minutes in the Premier League—fewer only than the 974 minutes he played in the 2018/19 season due to various injuries.

However, De Bruyne’s impact will never be forgotten. Much like his former Chelsea teammate Mohamed Salah, he rebounded from a lacklustre period at Stamford Bridge to return to the Premier League and excel.

After leaving Chelsea for Wolfsburg, De Bruyne thrived in Germany, recording the most assists in Europe’s top five leagues during the 2014-15 season with 20 assists and leading the Bundesliga in open-play chances created with 74.

This success led City to pay a reported £55 million for his services, and it may have been the best investment the club has ever made. Over ten seasons at the Etihad Stadium, De Bruyne has won six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, five EFL Cups, and a UEFA Champions League. He could potentially add another FA Cup to his achievements before leaving.

In the all-time Premier League assists chart, he ranks second only to Ryan Giggs, having recorded 118 assists—117 of which were for City (with one for Chelsea). Despite the gap to Giggs, De Bruyne boasts the best minutes-per-assist ratio in Premier League history, with an assist every 177 minutes for players with 50 or more appearances. This puts him well ahead of Dennis Bergkamp, who has a ratio of 236 minutes per assist.

Giggs averaged an assist every 287 minutes, but KDB holds the joint record for most assists in a Premier League season, achieving 20 assists during the 2019-20 campaign. Only Thierry Henry, in 2002-03, has matched that number in a single season.

Since joining City, De Bruyne has amassed at least 32 more assists (117) than any other Premier League player, created at least 294 more chances (827) than anyone else, and generated at least 214 more open-play chances (593). In fact, during this period, no player in Europe’s top five leagues has assisted more goals or created more chances than De Bruyne. Since Opta began recording data in 2003–04, only Cesc Fàbregas (846) has created more chances than De Bruyne’s 830 in the Premier League (three of which were for Chelsea). It is possible that De Bruyne could top that list before saying goodbye to City.

He also ranks fourth in goal involvement in the Premier League since arriving at City, with 187, trailing only Salah (267), Harry Kane (231), and Son Heung-min (198). This is particularly impressive considering he has reached double figures for goals in only two of his ten league campaigns with City.

De Bruyne has not gone easy on any opponent; he has scored or assisted against 30 of the 33 Premier League clubs he has faced while at City. With eight league matches remaining and an FA Cup semi-final—and potential final—ahead, it would be wonderful to see him make more appearances before the end of his illustrious career. Pep Guardiola reflected on it being “a sad day, but a happy day for the fact that I had the pleasure personally to live this time with him,” following the player’s announcement.

The Premier League will certainly miss De Bruyne, even if opposing defences won’t. The question now is where the Belgian maestro will go next.

Bayern Munich

Just as De Bruyne announced his leaving City this summer, it became known Thomas Müller, an equally illustrious modern great, would be departing Bayern Munich, the only club he’s known and where he lifted 12 championships and two European Cups. If the German powerhouse seeks a veteran presence to fill Müller’s void, then De Bruyne wouldn’t be a terrible shout, especially considering his Bundesliga past and that the Bavarians are now coached by his former City teammate and compatriot, Vincent Kompany.

De Bruyne is 10/1 with Bet365 to sign for Bayern Munich in the Summer transfer window

Any MLS club

The once-held reputation of MLS as a “retirement home” for ageing European footballers is no longer accurate. But that doesn’t mean players in the twilight years of their careers have stopped moving across the Atlantic. He could very well join them if Europe’s super clubs turn their backs on him. Southern Californian MLS side San Diego FC are reported to hold interest.

Any Saudi Pro League club

After that initial summer transfer window that saw a number of big names leave Europe—some from the Premier League (including De Bruyne’s former teammate Riyad Mahrez)—for a Saudi Pro League club, the moves have somewhat dried up, with the Middle Eastern league seemingly in a conscious mode of sustainability. But that doesn’t mean that if a player of De Bruyne’s ilk becomes available they’ll turn it down.

In fact, being linked with a move to Saudi is not new, though recent reports suggest he could be rubbing shoulders with Cristiano Ronaldo et al. with Neom SC, currently in the nation’s second tier but close to promotion. Neom are considered to be among the wealthiest clubs in world football, but further afield, Argentine champions River Plate are reportedly keeping tabs, as well as Turkish giants Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe, the latter managed by José Mourinho, who enjoyed an indifferent relationship with De Bruyne when both were at Chelsea together.