Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne rejected a move to Saudi Arabia last summer, but his contract situation means the interest could be renewed
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Manchester City could be tempted to accept an offer from Saudi Arabia for Kevin De Bruyne this summer, according to reports.
The Belgian returned from injury this year and quickly regained top form to aid in City’s charge to defend their Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup treble.
He is among the next raft of big names that the Saudi Pro League are hoping to attract when the season ends, after already bringing in the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema.
According to a report in The Athletic, City will keep an open mind about selling one of their greatest players if an eye-watering fee arrives for De Bruyne.
The Belgian enters the final year of his contract this summer and last summer’s case with Ilkay Gundogan showed that the Etihad club can be slow to offer extensions to players in their 30s.
De Bruyne turns 33 in June and would like to renew and potentially retire at City in a couple of years, underlined by him turning down almost £60 million a year to move to Saudi Arabia last summer.
De Bruyne spent the first half of the season out injured (Image credit: Getty Images)
However, negotiations are yet to start and the sporting director of the ambitious Saudi Pro League, Michael Emenalo, still hopes to tempt the Belgium international to the Middle East.
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The report adds that De Bruyne’s fitness could play a part in what City are wiling to offer, as he recovers from a hamstring problem.
A bid of around £90 million would therefore likely be accepted.
Another option for De Bruyne could be a move to Major League Soccer later in his career.
For now, the former Chelsea playmaker is focused on helping City defend their titles on all three fronts.
He has scored twice and provided eight assists in 10 games since returning to the pitch in January.
Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.
