City make major De Bruyne contract decision amid Saudi interest

Manchester City have reportedly made a big decision regarding Kevin De Bruyne’s future with the club, as interest from Saudi Arabia grows.

To Pep Guardiola’s squad, Kevin De Bruyne has always been an integral part, he has been Manchester City’s creative hub. Though other prominent players get greater recognition, the Belgian’s contributions are crucial in keeping the team running smoothly.

Still, the 32-year-old has all of one more year to determine whether or not to stay put. His future is now up in the air, and Saudi Pro League clubs are reportedly closely monitoring his situation.

Despite missing much of the season with an injury, De Bruyne has still managed to help the Citizens, having scored twice and setting up 13 goals. To make matters worse, as a result of aggravating his groin injury, the forward will miss Saturday’s FA Cup quarterfinal match against Newcastle.

City and De Bruyne postpone contract talks

“Kevin’s not ready. He already played in Anfield with some problems. But he’s getting better”, Pep Guardiola said on Friday.

“He’s not ready for tomorrow but we spoke with the manager from Belgium, Domenico Tedesco, and he decided. I’m grateful because he didn’t feel good and he could recover for the rest of the season.

“He played well [at Anfield]. All the players have problems but the day after he didn’t feel good, but it’s better to take care.”

Even though the manager has adjusted to playing without De Bruyne, he supposedly is hesitant to lose his primary motorman. According to Football Insider, the Spaniard is reportedly doing everything in his power to ensure that his playmaker remains at Manchester City.

The Blues and the Belgium international had been looking into a new contract for a while now. Nevertheless, the conversation has been paused until the campaign concludes, the article continues. As City resume their relentless pursuit of greatness, all talks have been suspended until the summer.

Saudi sides still lurking?

Not only are they still in the hunt for the Premier League championship, but they also have a game this weekend in the FA Cup against Newcastle. On Friday, UEFA also announced that they would face Real Madrid in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

But negotiations should be a formality as it does seem like the player wants to remain in the end. It seems that both sides are OK with the current state of affairs since they are willing to postpone things for a few more months.

Despite this, speculation persists that teams in Saudi Arabia may launch a major summer transfer push to acquire his services. The Athletic reports that last summer, a Saudi Pro League club offered the player a contract for $75.7 million annually. Nevertheless, he declined the chance.

But, if De Bruyne does really opt to leave England for the Kingdom this summer, he will join two other former City stars in making the move. Al-Ahli now have Riyah Mahrez on the field, while Aymeric Laporte has Cristiano Ronaldo as a teammate at Al-Nassr.

Photo credits: IMAGO / PA Images : IMAGO / Propaganda Photo