CITY De Bruyne ‘ready to surpass Messi and Ronaldo’

SANE SAYS BELGIAN CAN WIN BALLON D’OR

KEVIN de Bruyne is ready to surpass Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo - claims Leroy Sane.

And the German winger also believes Pep Guardiola has assembled a squad capable of conquering Europe.

City face Liverpool in the Champions League quarter-finals - having avoided giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the draw.

De Bruyne has become the Premier League leaders’ talisman - earning comparisons with Messi and Ronaldo, who have helped Barca and Real dominate Europe over the past 10 years.

They have also made the battle for the Ballon d’Or a personal duel sharing the trophy 10 times between them. Guardiola has told De Bruyne he must lead City to Champions League triumph if he is to earn the recognition of that pair - and Sane is convinced the Belgian is in position to claim football’s greatest individual honour.

“He’s a really special player, an unbelievable player,” he said. “The way he plays, how he shoots, how he passes the ball. It’s really nice to see it.

“Even in the games in training, I’m like ‘OK, how did he pass the ball right now? How did he do that?’ He has a really good chance to achieve it [the Ballon d’Or]. I hope he will do it.” De Bruyne will almost certainly have to be part of a Champions League winning side to break the duopoly of Messi and Ronaldo - or lead Belgium to World Cup triumph. Sane believes the Champions League is a realistic prospect for a City side that have swept all before them this season. “We’re a real strong team,” he told the National. “We understand Pep Guardiola’s philosophy, have improved a lot and know what he wants from us. “The Champions League is a really tough tournament and every single game is really special and difficult. “But we have a good chance to come to the final and win the Champions League. But it will be really difficult.” Sane has also hailed Guardiola’s contribution to City’s incredible campaign so far. “For me, he is the perfect coach,” he added. “Because he sees where your weaknesses are, where you can improve, and he tries to teach it and make you better. “Every young player likes playing for him, especially us now. All the players, all the team, can say ‘yeah, he’s made me better’ and this is really important for every player.” Leroy Sane on Kevin de Bruyne