Farewell to Kevin De Bruyne, The Biggest Thing Manchester City Awaits

The 2024-2025 English Premier League season can be considered one of the worst seasons for Manchester City under the management of Pep Guardiola. Although the championship title has already gone to Liverpool, "The Citizens" will still hold a celebration during their final home match of the season.

In the final match at the Etihad Stadium of the 2024-2025 competition campaign, City will not receive a championship trophy as they did in the previous four seasons. Instead, they will hold a bittersweet celebration. A celebration to honor the 10-year special career of Kevin De Bruyne, one of City's eternal legends.

The match against Bournemouth in the 37th week will be a farewell moment for De Bruyne and the City supporters. A great appreciation has been prepared by City for the player who has made a massive contribution to the achievement of 16 trophies in the last decade.

In an official statement from the club during the match between City and Wolverhampton Wanderers, Saturday (3/45/2025) early morning WIB, a farewell for "King Kev" will be held after the match against Bournemouth on May 20.

“There will be a post-match presentation with Kevin (De Bruyne) and fans inside the Etihad will have the chance to hear from him one last time,” the club's statement read.

I know I only have one game left here (Etihad), but I try to complete my task as best as I can.

However, before the official farewell, more than 50,000 City fans had already given De Bruyne a standing ovation when he was replaced by Phil Foden just six minutes into normal time against Wolves. The gesture of respect was not only to respond to De Bruyne's only goal in the 35th minute.

Supporters of City around the world know how significant De Bruyne's role has been in their club's golden era over the past decade. Arriving from VfL Wolfsburg as a player who failed to shine at Chelsea, De Bruyne has proven his outstanding performance while residing at the Etihad.

A collection of 108 goals and 177 assists from 418 matches stands as the statistical legacy of De Bruyne. Out of a total of 285 goal contributions while wearing the Citizens' jersey, 250 of those contributions were made under Guardiola's management. Undoubtedly, De Bruyne is the second player trained by Guardiola to record such a phenomenal number of goal contributions after Lionel Messi.

For De Bruyne, his final mission is to ensure that City qualifies for the Champions League this season and to secure the FA Cup trophy when facing Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on May 17. According to De Bruyne, his abilities are still adequate to play at the level required by City.

However, he respects the decision of the City management not to offer him a contract extension, which expires at the end of June this year. The 33-year-old player is determined to deliver his best performance in the final days of wearing The Citizens' jersey.

"I know I only have one game left here (Etihad) but I try to finish my job as best I can. I'm proud of what I've done with the club," De Bruyne told Sky Sports.

One reason—perhaps the most significant—for City management and Guardiola not to offer a contract extension to De Bruyne is the plan for squad regeneration. Moreover, De Bruyne has also become fragile due to being prone to injuries.

Since the 2023-2024 season, De Bruyne has been absent for 208 days due to various injuries he has suffered. This number could exceed 230 days when accounting for the poor fitness of matches that have left him sitting on the bench.

Regardless of his physical condition, which is not as prime as in the last five seasons, when playing, De Bruyne remains one of the best attacking midfielders in the Premier League and Europe today. Since announcing his departure from City on April 3, De Bruyne has scored two goals and provided one assist.

A goal and an assist were produced by De Bruyne to help City overturn a defeat and thrash Crystal Palace 5-2. Subsequently, De Bruyne's goal secured a 1-0 victory for City over Wolves.

Guardiola praised the significant and consistent contributions made by De Bruyne. The Spanish tactician hopes that De Bruyne's role can deliver another trophy for City through the FA Cup.

"Kevin's contribution is immense. Like Sergio and Vinnie, they have won the hearts of those associated with this club. It is not just about titles and statistics; their performances represent affection, love, and passion," said Guardiola as reported on the club's website.

"Another remarkable thing. After winning numerous trophies in this decade, he is still here to help us achieve another extraordinary accomplishment," he added.

After leaving City, many have predicted that De Bruyne will exit Europe. Two clubs from the United States, namely Chicago Fire and City’s sibling, New York City, are reported to have initiated contact with De Bruyne's representatives.

The Saudi League promotion team, Neom SC, is also one of the non-European teams interested in De Bruyne. De Bruyne is not yet considering his new team. His main focus remains on The Citizens.

"Many teammates were sad when they found out I was leaving, but that is part of life. I don't know (the future). I am still showing that I want to play or I am displaying performances that I did not show four or five weeks ago," said De Bruyne.

Wherever the new destination of De Bruyne may be, one thing is certain: City must erect a statue of the blonde midfielder from Belgium in the Etihad grounds. The statue of De Bruyne deserves to be placed alongside the six statues of City legends that already stand tall, such as Aguero, Kompany, David Silva, Colin Bell, Francis Lee, and Mike Summerbee.