Pep Guardiola Can No Longer Trust Key Man After Man City 0-2 Liverpool

Manchester City’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool underscored the club’s critical need for a full squad reset, which should be triggered by the departure of club legend Kevin De Bruyne in the summer. The Belgian was left on the bench as his team was eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Real Madrid in midweek.

Pep Guardiola emphasised that the decision was not due to fitness concerns, but that the 33-year-old was still capable of playing in major games. He was given the opportunity to prove this when he started against Liverpool at the Etihad on Sunday evening, but he did nothing to dispel speculation that his time at the top level was ended.

Mohamed Salah (14′) and Dominik Szoboszlai (37′) ensured Liverpool moved 11 points ahead at the top of the Premier League following Arsenal’s humiliating 1-0 defeat to West Ham United on Saturday. The visitors mostly controlled the proceedings, particularly in the middle of the field, with De Bruyne ineffective.

De Bruyne’s Sad Performance Against Liverpool The End.
Guardiola must say goodbye to Manchester City’s all-time great.

Arguably, City’s greatest servant, the Belgian international, no longer displays the creative flair and midfield mastery that Premier League fans have come to expect. De Bruyne lasted 66 minutes before Guardiola decided he’d had enough and replaced him with the younger James McAtee, who revitalised the hosts’ midfield.

The Premier League’s second all-time assister has regressed, and it was evident in a game he typically enjoys. His poor shot came in the midst of winning two of four ground duels, and his typical serenity in possession was absent, as he had the ball taken off eleven times and completed only 79% of his attempted passes.

Kevin De Bruyne versus Liverpool

Minutes Played

66′

Touches

41

Accurate passes.

23/29 (79%)

Key passes.

2

Crosses (acc.

2 (1)

Long balls (acc.).

4 (2)

Shots on target.

0

Shots are off target.

1

Shots blocked

1

Successful dribbling attempts

2 (1)

Ground duels (won).

4 (2)

Possession lost.

11

Guardiola is no longer able to rely on De Bruyne in big-profile games or under pressure, as evidenced by his woeful effort to shoot high and wide on the stroke of halftime. The rumour mill is that the Spaniard will call time on his captain’s Etihad career this summer when his contract ends, with MLS side San Diego FC apparently ‘certain’ of luring him to the United States.

Fans Rip Into ‘Washed’ De Bruyne

The consensus is that age has got to the City great

Fans on social media were as merciless as ever in their reactions to De Bruyne’s performance against Liverpool, on a day when man-of-the-match Salah, 32, continued to demonstrate that age is just a number for him. One fan wrote: ‘Sad to see Kevin De Bruyne is on his last legs.’ Another remarked: ”De Bruyne appears finished at this level, utterly horrible in that first half.

De Bruyne has engraved his name in City’s history books since coming at the Etihad in the summer of 2015, but tonight appeared to be his final game, with one supporter wondering, “Why is no one talking about De Bruyne’s downfall? The guy can hardly make a pass.

His frightening drop off this season appears to have reached its most obvious point following the Liverpool loss, with one supporter calling his performance a ‘total shocker’ and another exclaiming, ‘This can’t be real dude, De Bruyne is washed’.