King Kevin’s haul of fame still has big one missing
KEVIN DE BRUYNE was fooling no one when, on the eve of the semi-final showdown with Real Madrid, he declared himself satisfied with his trophy haul.
“I know what I’ve done – good and bad – in my career and I’m pretty happy with what I’ve done,” he said.
With three Premier League titles, five League Cups, one FA Cup, honours with Genk and Wolfsburg, as well as 88 caps for Belgium, De Bruyne has a career to be proud of.
But there is one glaring omission from his otherwise sparkling CV and, with him turning 31 next month, time is running out for him to add the Champions League to it – and he will have to wait for at least another year after last night’s agonising exit to Real Madrid.
De Bruyne ending his career without winning the Champions League would be up there with Steven Gerrard not winning the Premier League or George Best never gracing a World
Cup. A player blessed with his rare gifts deserves to win Europe’s elite club prize, to take his rightful place among the legends of the game who have lifted the iconic trophy.
This, of all seasons, would a fitting one on which for De Bruyne to be crowned a Champions League winner, after the personal travails he has had to endure.
An ankle injury, which left him in the worst pain he has known, saw him miss a month at the start of the season, while it took him a couple of months to shake off the after-effects of Covid, after testing positive in November.
Add to that the way last season’s Champions League final defeat by Chelsea ended for him – suffering a double facial fracture after a sickening clash with Antonio Rudiger – and De Bruyne has more reason that most to finally get his hands on the European Cup.
Perhaps that explained his anxious start to this second leg, with De Bruyne devoid of his usual fluency and rhythm.
After a slow start, he seemed to have found his form in the 20th minute, when he chipped a sublime ball through to Bernardo Silva, whose goalbound effort was diverted by Real keeper Thibaut Courtois.
Yet it proved a temporary moment of class from De Bruyne in an erratic first half, one in which his usually assured first touch went AWOL, much to the dismay of City boss Pep Guardiola, who cut an increasingly frustrated figure on the touchline.
De Bruyne continued to be sloppy in possession, as City were forced to dig deep and repel Real’s advances, as they tried to protect their one-goal advantage.
There were glimpses of De Bruyne’s outrageous eye for a pass and peerless execution, not least in the 55th minute, when he split the Real defence with a pinpoint pass to Phil Foden, though the England forward unable to get a shot away.
De Bruyne has built his deserved reputation on his flair and artistry, but this was a night when graft and tenacity were of greater importance.
Yet those virtues were not enough to send City through to an all-english final with Liverpool on May 28 in Paris.
De Bruyne and his teammates will have to wait another year to try to conquer Europe after Karim Benzema’s penalty (left) took Real through.