Kevin De Bruyne is the last man standing from pre-Guardiola Manchester City
By Dan Sheldon
When Manchester City lined up against Swansea on the final day of the 2015-16 Premier League season, the club was about to embark on a new era.
That summer saw Manuel Pellegrini leave and Pep Guardiola arrive, paving the way for the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager to begin an overhaul that has culminated in only one player remaining from City’s 1-1 draw against the Welsh side.
Raheem Sterling was sold to Chelsea for £47.5million ($57.2m) earlier this month, Fernandinho returned to Athletico Paranaense, while John Stones and Ilkay Gundogan joined the club in 2016 after Guardiola had already been installed as City’s manager.
The only player left from the pre-Guardiola era is Kevin De Bruyne.
“It shows I’m getting old now,” De Bruyne, 31, joked when asked about the overhaul. “That’s how it goes sometimes but I’ve been at the club seven years now, Pep has been here six.
“Everything has changed so much since Pep came, but it was funny to see there was just me left. In one way I can understand why it sometimes happens in football but the other part is sorry to see them go.”
This summer he saw Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko leave after being unable to nail down a starting spot. They both signed for Arsenal for a combined £77million.
“Sometimes it’s good to have the same team around you, but also you need to change things at times,” added De Bruyne.
Pellegrini’s final starting XI included Joe Hart, Bacary Sagna, Jesus Navas, Gael Clichy, Nicolas Otamendi, Eliaquim Mangala, Fernando, De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Sergio Aguero and Kelechi Iheanacho.
Named on the bench were Willy Caballero, Samir Nasri, Yaya Toure, Sterling, Wilfried Bony and Martin Demichelis.
The 2015-16 squad is a world away from the current one and De Bruyne lasting the course highlights his importance to Guardiola. Goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and strikers come and go, but the Belgium international remains constant.
It’s not only the names that have changed, however. The quality of players attracted during the Guardiola era has risen, resulting in City losing only 18 Premier League games out of their last 114 and winning two titles in that timeframe.
Jesus and Sterling may have left, but City have already added Erling Haaland to the squad. Julian Alvarez, the highly regarded forward, also came through the door after joining in January and staying at River Plate on loan.
It is why there is little panic about a player of Sterling’s quality leaving.
You can debate whether it was a sensible decision or not, and De Bruyne may miss the relationship he had with the England international, but the prospect of assisting Haaland is likely to keep him satisfied.
In the six years Guardiola has been at the helm, City have become one of Europe’s elite clubs — even if the Champions League trophy still eludes them — and this is through recruitment.
Because of Guardiola’s management style, there is always the need to hit refresh.
City are operating at a level where 95 per cent effort is not going to cut it and, for some players, their motivation levels will inevitably drop upon hearing similar messages day in, day out.
It is a similar situation at their closest Premier League rivals, Liverpool, in recent seasons. Jurgen Klopp knows he cannot allow complacency to creep in, nor can he wait for the environment to go stale.
Playing time will of course factor heavily when it comes to leaving City, as it did in Sterling’s case, but that is another sign of how strong the club’s squad is when compared to Pellegrini’s final game in charge.
Fernandinho, De Bruyne and Aguero aside, the other eight players from the starting XI were deemed at a level not good enough for Guardiola. And how many players from the bench would get close to a similar spot in the current team? Not many.
Of that final pre-Guardiola match day squad, Caballero (Southampton), Iheanacho (Leicester City) and Sterling remain in the Premier League — and only the latter and Aguero, who retired in December due to a heart condition, left for clubs at the top end of European football.
Meanwhile, the City squad continues to evolve around De Bruyne, but he is not being left behind. Last season was his most prolific in the Premier League, scoring 15 times and creating another eight goals.
This goes to show the brilliance of De Bruyne. He may joke about feeling old, but he has been able to stick the course and thrive while others have fallen by the wayside.
https://theathletic.com/3447259/2022/07/26/kevin-de-bruyne-manchester-city-guardiola/
Kevin De Bruyne is the last man standing from pre-Guardiola Manchester City
By Dan Sheldon
When Manchester City lined up against Swansea on the final day of the 2015-16 Premier League season, the club was about to embark on a new era.
That summer saw Manuel Pellegrini leave and Pep Guardiola arrive, paving the way for the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager to begin an overhaul that has culminated in only one player remaining from City’s 1-1 draw against the Welsh side.
Raheem Sterling was sold to Chelsea for £47.5million ($57.2m) earlier this month, Fernandinho returned to Athletico Paranaense, while John Stones and Ilkay Gundogan joined the club in 2016 after Guardiola had already been installed as City’s manager.
The only player left from the pre-Guardiola era is Kevin De Bruyne.
“It shows I’m getting old now,” De Bruyne, 31, joked when asked about the overhaul. “That’s how it goes sometimes but I’ve been at the club seven years now, Pep has been here six.
“Everything has changed so much since Pep came, but it was funny to see there was just me left. In one way I can understand why it sometimes happens in football but the other part is sorry to see them go.”
This summer he saw Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko leave after being unable to nail down a starting spot. They both signed for Arsenal for a combined £77million.
“Sometimes it’s good to have the same team around you, but also you need to change things at times,” added De Bruyne.
Pellegrini’s final starting XI included Joe Hart, Bacary Sagna, Jesus Navas, Gael Clichy, Nicolas Otamendi, Eliaquim Mangala, Fernando, De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Sergio Aguero and Kelechi Iheanacho.
Named on the bench were Willy Caballero, Samir Nasri, Yaya Toure, Sterling, Wilfried Bony and Martin Demichelis.
The 2015-16 squad is a world away from the current one and De Bruyne lasting the course highlights his importance to Guardiola. Goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and strikers come and go, but the Belgium international remains constant.
It’s not only the names that have changed, however. The quality of players attracted during the Guardiola era has risen, resulting in City losing only 18 Premier League games out of their last 114 and winning two titles in that timeframe.
Jesus and Sterling may have left, but City have already added Erling Haaland to the squad. Julian Alvarez, the highly regarded forward, also came through the door after joining in January and staying at River Plate on loan.
It is why there is little panic about a player of Sterling’s quality leaving.
You can debate whether it was a sensible decision or not, and De Bruyne may miss the relationship he had with the England international, but the prospect of assisting Haaland is likely to keep him satisfied.
In the six years Guardiola has been at the helm, City have become one of Europe’s elite clubs — even if the Champions League trophy still eludes them — and this is through recruitment.
Because of Guardiola’s management style, there is always the need to hit refresh.
City are operating at a level where 95 per cent effort is not going to cut it and, for some players, their motivation levels will inevitably drop upon hearing similar messages day in, day out.
It is a similar situation at their closest Premier League rivals, Liverpool, in recent seasons. Jurgen Klopp knows he cannot allow complacency to creep in, nor can he wait for the environment to go stale.
Playing time will of course factor heavily when it comes to leaving City, as it did in Sterling’s case, but that is another sign of how strong the club’s squad is when compared to Pellegrini’s final game in charge.
Fernandinho, De Bruyne and Aguero aside, the other eight players from the starting XI were deemed at a level not good enough for Guardiola. And how many players from the bench would get close to a similar spot in the current team? Not many.
Of that final pre-Guardiola match day squad, Caballero (Southampton), Iheanacho (Leicester City) and Sterling remain in the Premier League — and only the latter and Aguero, who retired in December due to a heart condition, left for clubs at the top end of European football.
Meanwhile, the City squad continues to evolve around De Bruyne, but he is not being left behind. Last season was his most prolific in the Premier League, scoring 15 times and creating another eight goals.
This goes to show the brilliance of De Bruyne. He may joke about feeling old, but he has been able to stick the course and thrive while others have fallen by the wayside.
https://theathletic.com/3447259/2022/07/26/kevin-de-bruyne-manchester-city-guardiola/