Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has insisted that Kevin De Bruyne is capable of doing "absolutely everything", after the Belgian put in another man-of-the-match performance in Saturday's 1-0 win over Chelsea.
Showed once again how good he is
De Bruyne has been a crucial player for the Cityzens since his move from VfL Wolfsburg in the summer of 2015, and many touted 26-year-old to be the player of the season for the current campaign.
The Belgian however didn't have the best of starts to the campaign but has picked up in the last few weeks, and the forward was once again crucial as City traveled to Stamford Bridge to take on the Premier League champions.
It was a game that produced little in the way of opportunities but it was De Bruyne's excellent effort in the 67th minute separated the two sides, and once again Guardiola was full of praise for the effectiveness of the Belgian.
"He can do absolutely everything," Guardiola proclaimed post-match. "With the ball he is in different positions and can assist short and long."
"After, without the ball he's the most humble, the most shy guy," the Catalan coach confirmed. "He says 'if I have to run 100km for the team, I will do that'."
"It is not easy to find that with this type of talent," he admitted. "He's one of our captains."
"I think he makes a step forward and people feel comfortable having him on the pitch," Guardiola added. "At the end, Kevin showed once again how good he is, that guy."
Going to try
The win over Antonio Conte's side continued City's excellent start to the campaign and continued to solidify their credentials as title contenders, with the Cityzens currently leading the table on goal difference going into the international break.
Despite their excellent form they are been matched by bitter rivals Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea are also expected to be strong contenders come May and Guardiola admitted that City are "going to try" to be serious title contenders.
"Jose with United always will be tough," he said. "Because now you see United and think, OK, that is a Jose Mourinho team."
"So aggressive, they win duels, so good on the counter-attack," the 46-year-old stated. "They have already convinced that they can do it that way. So it will be so tough."
"But it is important in the process," the coach reiterated. "To show we can do that. We can go to Old Trafford, White Hart Lane [sic] or Emirates Stadium, it doesn't matter."
"We are going to try," Guardiola added. "After that, the opponents are good too. But we are going to try."