Wolfsburg coach hints at Kevin de Bruyne departure

Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking has dropped a hint that Kevin De Bruyne could be set to leave the Bundesliga side, admitting that the next few days will be "difficult".

Before the weekend Hecking said he was growing tired of all the speculation linking the Belgium international with a move to Manchester City, adding his conviction that last season's Bundesliga player of the year would be staying put.

However, Hecking's position changed on Monday when he paid tribute to De Bruyne as he picked up an award as Lower Saxony's footballer of the year in a ceremony in Barsinghausen.

"These are going to be difficult days for all involved," Hecking said, as reported by sport1.de. "And even if our days together should not continue, I would already now like to wish him all the best."

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De Bruyne picked up his award, promising to "give my best for Wolfsburg", although it is now unclear whether he will get another opportunity to do so.

The Wolves' next game is against Cologne on Saturday and his performance in the 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday suggested that the transfer talk was distracting him.

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"It certainly wasn't one of his best games," admitted Hecking, who substituted the former Chelsea player with 15 minutes remaining.

City are reportedly lining up a £45million pound bid for De Bruyne, which would be a new Bundesliga record transfer.