Few players have been as influential for Manchester City this season as Belgian stalwart Kevin De Bruyne has been. This is hardly shocking though as ever since the midfield maestro joined City in 2015, he has been a player for the biggest of occasions.
Whether it be his 2016 outside of the box strike vs Paris Saint-Germain to send City through to their first-ever Champions League semi-final or his incredible solo goal away to Chelsea the following year which set the precedent for City’s 100-point-winning side, the Belgian has always been key to City’s play and progress in his seven years at the club.
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already contributing 11 goals and 6 assists in the Premier League to send City top of the table with six games to go. Ahead of this weekend, the Blues led Liverpool by a single point following an emphatic 3-0 victory over Brighton in which De Bruyne was named man of the match.
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The Belgian’s strong charging run, holding off several Brighton players was influential in setting up Riyad Mahrez’s opening goal and De Bruyne added to this by bagging himself an assist in the closing stages, playing Bernardo Silva clear on goal.
Game-winning contributions have been an aspect of the Belgian’s game all season with several high profile goals against the top sides. De Bruyne scored the winning goal vs Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium back in January to all but remove them from the title race as well as notching two against local rivals in March and another against title challengers Liverpool earlier this month.
De Bruyne is the current holder of the esteemed PFA Player of the Year award which is given to the player adjudged to have been the best that season but crucially is voted by fellow players, adding extra weight to the honour. To be lauded by onlookers and pundits is one thing, but to be acknowledged by both your teammates and opponents as the best is a next-level achievement.
The Belgian has won the prestigious individual honour for the last two seasons and will be hoping that his impressive contributions this season will be enough to secure a hat-trick of PFA Player of the Year awards.
He faces tough competition from Liverpool’s Mohammed Salah who currently has 22 goals. Salah claimed the award in 2017/18 while City claimed the title that year.
Another potential challenger is Tottenham Hotspur’s Heung-min Son who currently has 17 goals. However, despite a fine individual season enjoyed by the South Korean, the club will finish trophyless for the 14th consecutive season, lessening the winger’s chances of prevailing with the admired individual award.
The two sides are both vying for the title this season and with six games to go, De Bruyne could still go on to become the first player to win the award three times in a row should he contribute heavily to what would be a sixth Premier League title for Manchester City.
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