- Kevin De Bruyne is one of the finest midfielders in the world and is part of the brilliant batch of Belgian players currently making their mark on the beautiful game.
- The 26 year old currently plays for the reigning English Premier League champions, Manchester City.
Beginnings:
- Kevin De Bruyne was born in Drongen, a submunicipality of the city of Ghent.
- He was born to an English mother, who herself was born in Burundi and has also lived a part of her life in the Ivory Coast.
- Stefanie De Bruyne is the only sibling that Kevin has.
- De Bruyne is fluent in the following languages: French, Dutch and English.
Kevin’s Journey:
- De Bruyne’s early development took place at KVV Drongen, Gent and Genk.
- His professional debut came in the 2008-09 season for Genk.
- The following season, was De Bruyne’s breakthrough season. The youngster established himself in the first team.
- Three fruitful years followed his debut. De Bruyne’s game came on leaps and bounds as he helped Genk lift their third league title.
- On 31 January 2012, on the winter transfer deadline day, Premier League club Chelsea and Genk announced the permanent signing of De Bruyne, with the fee believed to be around £7 million.
- De Bruyne made his debut for Chelsea in a friendly match against Major League Soccer (MLS) side Seattle Sounders FC in a 4–2 win.
- The then 20 year old was loaned to Werder Bremen for the 2012-13 season.
- The 2012-13 campaign was a successful one for De Bruyne who scored goals in double figures and assisted aplenty for his loan club.
- The return to Chelsea was an unsuccessful one. A lack of playing time and a friction with manager Jose Mourinho meant that De Bruyne’s return was a short one.
- On 18 January 2014, Wolfsburg signed Kevin De Bruyne for a fee of £18 million (€22 million).
- After a bright start to his career with Wolfsburg, the Belgian international really came to the fore in the 2014-2015 season.
- De Bruyne performed outstandingly and, for his efforts, he was named the 2015 Footballer of the Year in Germany.
- On 30 May 2015, he started and scored in the 2015 DFB-Pokal Final as his side defeated Borussia Dortmund 3–1 at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.
- Due to his performances, De Bruyne was the subject of strong interest from Manchester City.
- On 27 August 2016, it was reported that Manchester City made a successful bid for De Bruyne, worth £55 million. The transfer went through three days later.
- In his three years at City, De Bruyne has lit up the Premier League.
- Making around a century of appearances for the Manchester side, the midfielder has become a lynchpin in the center of the park.
- He is a part of the magnificent City side that has won the most recent English Premier League season with a record tally of 100 hundred points in the recently concluded season.
Career Records/Stats in Brief:
- Kevin De Bruyne ended his first full season with Wolfsburg having racked up 16 goals and 27 assists in all competitions.
- After his move to City, in total, he has recorded, 21 goals and 43 assists.
- For his superb displays and his league high 16 assists, De Bruyne was awarded the Playmaker of the Year in 2017-2018.
Fun Facts:
- Kevin De Bruyne has been amusingly nicknamed ‘the Prince’. This is because his hair are ginger coloured, just like Prince Harry.
- He has named Christian Eriksen and Kaka as players who share the same style of play as him.
- In 2015, Kevin De Bruyne bought his first car, a Mercedes, having previously relied on club vehicles, in preparation for the birth of his first child.
- The Belgian published an autobiography named Keep It Simple in 2014.
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