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Headache for Guardiola, De Bruyne would go to Saudi and his possible replacement at Manchester City

Kevin De Bruyne could be heading out of Manchester City which worries Pep Guardiola.

By Emmanuel Mendez

Kevin De Bruyne looks up with a Belgium jersey on while Pep Guardiola is upset and the Manchester CIty badge is next to him. (Source: BBC, Rudy Galetti X)

Kevin De Bruyne has been one of the best players for Manchester City over the last couple of years and is perhaps one of the club's greatest-ever players in history. He shined for many years under Pep Guardiola, and although he continues to shine for them on the pitch and to win multiple Premier League titles, the Belgian's time at Man City may be over sooner rather than later. His contract with the club expires in the summer of 2025, and he may be gone this summer as interest from Saudi Arabia has taken place. Rudy Galetti from La TV dello Sport reports that De Bruyne is open to meeting with the Saudi Arabian club next week to discuss the proposal with him. The two clubs that are heavily interested in him are Al Nassr and Al Ittihad. Manchester City will be willing to let him go if they find the ideal replacement. One player in mind could be their transfer target, Florian Wirtz, who plays as a 10 in Bayer Leverkusen and is often praised for his passing and creative play-making abilities. These characteristics are similar to those of De Bruyne, and Man City fans would welcome the signing.

Rudy Galtetti continues to report how close De Bruyne is to leaving Manchester City. He reported that there is a verbal agreement between Al Ittihad and De Bruyne to get the deal done. A delegation for the PIF and representatives to the Saudi Pro League club have already spoken to De Bruyne, who is open to making the move to the team. Manchester City and Al Ittihad now need to discuss the deal and agree on a fee. The key to completing it is if Man City is open to letting him go, and reports suggest that they are.

De Bruyne has played a total of 382 matches for Manchester City throughout his career across all competitions. He scored 102 goals for Man City and provided 170 assists across all competitions. This past season, De Bruyne played a total of 26 matches for Manchester City across all competitions, which included the UEFA Champions League, the FA Cup, and the Premier League. Across all the competitions, he scored six goals and provided 18 assists for Man City. He played very few amount of games after suffering a hamstring injury that kept him out for the majority of the first half of the season.

Kevin De Bruyne at the EUROS

Unfortunately for De Buyrne and Belgium, their EUROS campaign is over after being eliminated by France in the Round of 16. They finished second in their group with four points after they lost 1-0 to Slovakia, won 2-0 against Romania, and drew 0-0 against Ukraine. Belgium lost 1-0 against France in the Round of 16 due to Jan Vertonghen's own goal. De Bruyne is expected to take a vacation with his family now and then discuss his future with Manchester City, which could lead to him leaving this summer to play in the Saudi Pro League next season.

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