According to Philip Harmeling, a football agent and journalist with close ties to Wolfsburg, Kevin De Bruyne is officially a Wolfsburg player after agreeing a deal with the German club.
Official: As I said earlier today, they was few things to be fix before announcement. De Bruyne is now a VFL Wolfsburg player.
— Philip Harmeling (@PhilipHarmeling) January 10, 2014
I have no clue about the deal. Last info I got was a loan. Whatever, we can be sure that KdB will wear a green shirt for the next year.
— Philip Harmeling (@PhilipHarmeling) January 10, 2014
Earlier, it was reported that a potential permanent deal is on as Chelsea and Wolfsburg are nearing an agreement which would guarantee Chelsea £18m from the transfer. For now, though, it is to be considered a loan move.
The whole saga started in the summer when he returned from loan (was at Werder Bremen) and had impressed Chelsea's Michael Emenalo as well as Jose Mourinho. When asked the question on whether KDB would feature often for the club, Mourinho first said that the Belgian would be very active at the club. Mourinho stuck to his word as De Bruyne featured regularly in the preseason Asia tour as well as the season-opener against Hull City.
The tables turned when Mourinho and Chelsea signed Anji's Willian. snatching him from right under Spurs' grasp. Since that signing, KDB has rarely been featured in match-day squads and has made very few appearances.
The loan move is good for all parties involved, De Bruyne gets to work towards securing a place in the Belgian World Cup squad, Wolfsburg gets a very good player to help them push up the Bundesliga table and Chelsea de-bloat their oversized squad and allow one of their most promising youngsters to further develop.