Kevin De Bruyne has opened the door to a potential move to Saudi Arabia – and Manchester City fans have been reacting to the star’s comments.
The Belgian maestro surprised a few people on Tuesday, as he spoke about his future for the first time.
Speculation has been rife about De Bruyne over the last couple of months, with the 32-year-old being out of contract in the summer of 2025.
De Bruyne has had injury problems in recent times, which has led to talk of him perhaps leaving the club this summer. But the narrative for a while has been that the player is expected to stay at the Etihad Stadium.
But on Tuesday, De Bruyne made some surprising remarks – and opened the door to a move to Saudi. Speaking honestly while on Belgium duty, he said: “For Michèle [Lacroix, his partner], an exotic adventure is okay. These are also conversations that we are increasingly having as a family.”
De Bruyne continued: “I still have one year left on my contract, so I have to think about what could happen. My eldest is now eight years old and knows nothing but England. He also asks how long I will play for City. Once the moment comes, we will have to deal with it in a certain way.”
“At my age, you have to be open to everything. You’re talking about incredible amounts of money in what may be the end of my career. Sometimes, you have to think about that.”
“If I play there for two years, I will be able to earn an incredible amount of money. Before that, I had to play football for 15 years. I may not even reach that amount yet.”
Manchester City fans react to Kevin De Bruyne Saudi comments
It is safe to say that not many people expected De Bruyne to say what he said on Tuesday.
De Bruyne – who is City’s highest-paid star on around £400,000 per week – has never before given the impression that he would join the SPL.
Many feel that De Bruyne still has plenty left in the tank. Indeed, he still managed a very impressive 18 assists in his 26 appearances in 2023/24.
But it looks though even King Kev can’t help but consider the tantalising wages on offer from the SPL.
Fans have been reacting to the star’s comments today on social media. Many were left shocked. @Brxyne_17 wrote ‘He’s already earning 400k per week this is surprising’, while @emcityboy wrote ‘Kevin don’t do this to us’.
@SparkyyyCity added ‘He’s leaving isn’t he?
De Bruyne has obviously been an incredible player and servant for City since signing for the club back in 2015.
He is easily one of the club’s greatest-ever players, and has produced so many moments of magic for City fans to feast their eyes on over the years.
With that in mind, and given the age he is at now and his recent injury problems, some would not actually blame De Bruyne for making the move to Saudi this summer.
@kooljezz wrote ‘Would be selfish to demand more from this legend. Let him go and earn his retirement. Thank you King @KevinDeBruyne’. @CW9_MCFC said ‘I’d let him go if there’s a reasonable cash offer on the table’.
@luis_rae_ believes De Bruyne should make the move, writing ‘He deserves it and should go for it. @Shawn_1211 reckons the star has earned the right to go wherever he likes, writing ‘KDB has earned to do whatever he wants.
It remains to be seen if a deal will come to fruition. Previously, it have been suggested that it could take over £100 million plus bonuses for City to sell.