The transfer market is officially open and operating now. Every club is working on enhancing their squads and Manchester City is no exception to that, as Manuel Pellegrini is trying to close some gaps within his squad to prepare his team for a fresh new season - setting a target to be Premier League champions again.
de Bruyne's future still uncertain, with City ready to pounce
With James Milner's departure to Liverpool, the Chilean is still aiming to land VfL Wolfsburg's creative midfielder Kevin de Bruyne. A talent to provide his squad with pace, depth, tactical options, skills and most importantly, goals and assists. It is the time for rumours and reports to get enormously spread and De Bruyne's agent, Patrick de Koster, has given the Citizens some hope on landing the Belgian star, according to Manchester Evening News.
"Will Kevin definitely stay with Wolfsburg? I await their proposal. I have not sat down at the table with the club." de Koster was directly replying to Wolfsburg's sporting director Klaus Allofs, when he adamantly stated that de Bruyne will stay at Wolfsburg as the player has a contract which keeps him at the club until 2019.
Manchester City's captain and centre-back Vincent Kompany, has also hailed his Belguim team-mate's talent, according to Goal.
"Kevin is a phenomenal talent. He’s a game-changer, he’s efficient in front of goal but he’s also a great passer, which is probably his biggest quality. I try not to influence too much but I do recognise the fact that he’s an unbelievable talent and any team he goes to, he will make that team stronger.
If he comes to City, I would be one of the happiest guys in the team. But it’s not my call and it’s his decision to make."
But what would de Bruyne really add to Manuel Pellegrini's squad if a deal is actually done? Let's take a look at Manchester City's attacking midfield players and compare their stats with the former Chelsea star...
| Kevin de Bruyne | David Silva | James Milner | Samir Nasri | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | 34 | 32 | 32 | 24 |
| Goals scored | 10 | 12 | 5 | 2 |
| Assists | 20 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| Key passes | 91 | 86 | 45 | 46 |
| Chances created | 111 | 93 | 52 | 52 |
Influential figure, highly sought-after
Magnificent stats. de Bruyne recorded the most assists, with twenty, in the Bundesliga last term and he would no doubt be a key addition to Pellegrini's men next season. He already has Premier League experience, albeit short-lived minutes, as he was with the 2014/15 league champions - Chelsea. Another interesting stat - he was able to provide an average of 2.68 key passes per game. Only David Silva was able to provide more, with an extremely narrow margin between the two, the Spanish playmaker totalled 2.69 key passes a game. Moreover, de Bruyne was able to create an average of 3.62 chances per game, more than Silva (2.91), Milner (1.62) and Nasri (2.17).
If he does in-fact join the Citzens, it'd be a big signal of intent. Not only are they intent on regaining their status as the best club team in the league, but signing one of the most sought-after players could help them up their level both domestically and in the UEFA Champions League, where they've struggled since consistently qualifying for the competition.
