Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to have graced the Premier League, will likely bid farewell to English football at the end of the season. The Belgian, who first moved to these shores with Chelsea in 2012, has had a remarkable career in the world’s biggest football league. But where does he rank amongst the great Premier League midfielders?
Ultimately, just where Kevin De Bruyne ranks is subjective, but his achievements are not to be sniffed at. While the former Genk prodigy struggled to make an impact at the Blues at the tender age of 20, his £7m transfer to Chelsea wasn’t bad business at the time. In fact, the creative midfielder was viewed as one of football’s most exciting young talents. In the end, though, he searched for pastures new, eventually joining Werder Bremen on loan.
A permanent move to VfL Wolfsburg followed in 2014, with Jose Mourinho opting to go with a more experienced Chelsea squad. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise for De Bruyne, who went on to shine in the Bundesliga, before eventually being snapped up by Manchester City, a club fans are currently backing for a top four finish at FIRST.com.
Manchester City’s move was a masterstroke
According to his manager, Pep Guardiola, Kevin De Bruyne will go down as “one of the greatest midfielders ever to have played in this country”. Manchester City probably weren’t aware of just how special he’d become, especially after a failed move to Chelsea. In the end, snapping him up has turned out to be a masterstroke. De Bruyne has continually evolved at City, opting to depart after 10 trophy-laden seasons where he has been integral.
De Bruyne has won it all
Of course, you can still be up there with the very best midfielders the league has seen despite not winning the competition, as the likes of Steven Gerrard have shown. However, Kevin De Bruyne has won the Premier League on six occasions, earning him fifth place on the list of midfielders with the most league titles. Additionally, he played his part in the Citizens lifting their first ever Champions League trophy in 2023, completing a historic treble in the process. The City hero has also won five League Cups, two FA Cups, and three Community Shields, plus the FIFA Club World Cup and the UEFA Super Cup.
The stats suggest he’s right up there
Alongside the trophies he’s won during a dominant period for Manchester City, Kevin De Bruyne has also recorded some impressive statistics. De Bruyne is officially the second-highest assist maker in Premier League history (119), while he is eighth on the list in terms of most goals scored by a Premier League midfielder (72). Frank Lampard tops the rankings with 177 goals, Steven Gerrard has 121, Son Heung-min scored 110, and Ryan Giggs found the back of the net 109 times.
A joy to watch
Kevin De Bruyne has also consistently produced out-of-this-world displays in a Manchester City shirt. The midfield maestro has almost everything to his game, with his ability on the ball enabling him to run the biggest games and his passing range putting it on a plate for the likes of Sergio Aguero and Erling Haaland. While he might lack the defensive abilities midfield generals like Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira possessed, De Bruyne’s creativity is arguably the strongest we’ve ever seen, backed up by the fact that the 33-year-old has been crowned the Premier League’s playmaker of the season on three occasions. When it comes to chances created, nobody comes close to Kevin De Bruyne’s tally of 827.
The debate will rumble on
While it’s hard to label Kevin De Bruyne as the best midfield player English football’s top flight has ever seen, there will be plenty of people who will. Where De Bruyne perhaps falls short for some is his all-round game, though, particularly when assessing his defensive duties, with many fans perhaps giving it to the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard given their all-round games. But, when it comes to producing moments of magic in the attacking third, Kevin De Bruyne is arguably the man to beat.
