Kevin De Bruyne behind only Lionel Messi and one other surprising player in assists for past 30 years

Kevin De Bruyne is now behind only Lionel Messi and one surprise name in the assist charts over the last 30 years.

Despite missing the opening five months of the season through injury, Kevin De Bruyne has made a huge contribution to Manchester City's Premier League title bid.

The Belgian midfielder suffered a serious hamstring injury on the opening day of the season, and had to wait until January to make his second appearance of the campaign.

Understandably, De Bruyne hasn't been at the top of his game on a consistent basis since returning from such a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

However, even with several poor performances thrown into the mix, the 32-year-old has put up some seriously impressive numbers over the the past four months.

De Bruyne has provided 15 assists in 21 appearances in all competitions this season, more than any other player in the Premier League.

The stars closest to him in the charts, such as Bukayo Saka and Darwin Nunez, have featured in double the number of games he has.

De Bruyne's late season productivity has seen him surge up another set of rankings.

The City star is now behind only Lionel Messi and former Barcelona and Real Madrid winger Luis Figo when it comes to the number of assists provided in the last 30 years.

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Messi's career tally of 366 assists is unlikely to ever be beaten, especially as the Barcelona legend is still playing with Inter Miami and Argentina.

Second in the charts is Figo, who amassed 283 assists while playing for Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Portugal.

De Bruyne currently sits on 282 career assists, meaning he could easily overtake Figo before the end of the season.

His most recent assists came in City's 2-0 defeat of Nottingham Forest on Sunday, as he crossed for Josko Gvardiol to head home before he slipped Erling Haaland in on goal for City's second.