Lamine Yamal has made his feelings clear on Kevin De Bruyne amid Barcelona transfer links
Lamine Yamal has made his feelings on Kevin De Bruyne amid links to Barcelona after he announced his Manchester City exit on Friday.
De Bruyne joined City from Wolfsburg in 2015 and has won 16 major trophies at the Etihad Stadium, including six Premier League titles.
But his trophy-laden stint in Manchester is about to come an end. Out of contract in the summer, the 33-year-old has confirmed that he will not be extending his stay at City and will instead move on to a new chapter.
'I'll get straight to it and let you all know that these will be my final months as a Manchester City player," De Bruyne began in a lengthy goodbye message on X.
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"Nothing about this is easy to write, but as football players, we all know this day eventually comes. That day is here - and you deserve to hear it from me first."
The two-time PFA Player of the Year has been heavily linked to both the MLS and Saudi Pro League for what looks to set to be his final career move.
There have been some rumblings of Barcelona keeping tabs on De Bruyne for a while now and there were reports stating the Blaugrana would pursue a free transfer for a player they tried to sign many years back.
A deal looks unlikely but Barca sensational Yamal has already given his seal of approval to De Bruyne, arguably City's best ever player.
The Euro 2024 Young Player of the Tournament was asked by Spanish radio station Radioestadio Noche which Premier League player he would love to play alongside and quickly replied: 'Kevin De Bruyne.''
The 17-year-old grew up watching De Bruyne dominating English football and winning every available trophy with City, including the coveted Champions League in 2023.
Kevin De Bruyne next club odds: Clear favourites emerge
De Bruyne has been heavily linked with new MLS franchise San Diego and The Athletic previously reported that discussions with his camp took place.
As per Oddschecker, the former Chelsea star is most likely to join any Major League Soccer team in the summer, with odds of 10/11 on Bet365.
However, as aforementioned, he does also have admirers from Saudi Arabia and recent reports claim second tier side Neom SC could be his next destination. With Bet365, he is priced 11/8 to sign for any team in Saudi, while former club Genk are 20/1.
Interestingly, Bayern Munich, Rangers, River Plate, Wolfsburg and Girona are also included on the list.
De Bruyne has 280 goal contributions in City colours since joining in a £54 million switch and will go down as one of the best midfielders in history.
Topics: FC Barcelona, Kevin De Bruyne, Lamine Yamal, Man City
Josh Lawless