Manchester City’s Strategy To Replace Kevin De Bruyne This Summer Revealed

‎Manchester City is considering several options to replace captain Kevin De Bruyne this summer, including Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White and Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz.

‎City playmaker De Bruyne announced last Friday that he is to depart City when this season ends after 10 years at the Etihad Stadium.

‎Manchester City is set to explore both internal and external solutions to fill the void left by the 33-year-old Belgium international.

‎Multiple candidates, including Gibbs-White and Wirtz, are expected to be considered during the club’s discussions.

‎The city does not intend to prioritize transfer targets until the new director of football, Hugo Viana, gets fully underway in his role. 

‎Viana is replacing Txiki Begiristain and officially started this week, the pair working together during a transition period.

‎The Portuguese was seen at Old Trafford during Sunday’s Manchester derby and is sure to exert significant influence over City’s recruitment work.

‎It remains to be determined whether City will choose to sign a direct replacement for De Bruyne or rely on existing players like Phil Foden, potentially focusing on strengthening a different attacking area instead.

‎Gibbs-White has enjoyed an impressive campaign so far, registering five goals and nine assists in 27 Premier League appearances as Forest challenge for a Champions League qualification place.

‎The 25-year-old, who is contracted until 2027, earned a first call-up to the England squad in August under interim head coach Lee Carsley and received his first two caps the following month.

‎Wirtz, meanwhile, has become one of European football’s most coveted men after a fine 2023-24.

‎He won Bundesliga Player of the Season as Leverkusen went undefeated domestically, lifting their first league title and the DFB-Pokal.

‎Since making his senior debut at 17 in 2020, Wirtz has played 191 matches, scoring 56 goals and providing 63 assists.

‎He has earned 29 caps for Germany and was included in Julian Nagelsmann’s squad for Euro 2024.

‎Leverkusen values the 21-year-old at €150m, with Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich also interested.

‎Wirtz’s contract expires in 2027 and he is yet to agree fresh terms, although Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro said in November that the chances of him extending are “very high.”