Manchester City offer transfer clarity on Kevin De Bruyne’s future amid Saudi Arabia interest

Sources close to Manchester City have issued clarity surrounding the future of Kevin De Bruyne amid intensifying reports of an imminent Saudi Arabia switch.

Whilst the Belgian remains on holiday with family and friends in Ibiza, reports have continued to swirl surrounding the player’s future at Manchester City, and the possibility of a fresh challenge in the Middle-East.

De Bruyne’s contract at the Etihad Stadium currently runs until the summer of 2025, and at present there has been little to no progress on an extension to that agreement, despite both parties being open to the conversation.

The weekend brought about fresh claims of an agreement being struck between Saudi Pro League side Al Ittihad and Kevin De Bruyne on an imminent transfer to Saudi Arabia, which was met by a social media frenzy amongst the football community.

However, in light of such reports, a number of sources have moved quickly to provide accurate clarity on the situation, and what is the current expectation from within the Etihad Stadium on the Manchester City playmaker’s future.

As first reported by transfer market insider Fabrizio Romano, Saudi Arabia sources have been keen to insist that recent reports of Kevin De Bruyne ‘reaching an agreement’ with Pro League side Al Ittihad are not true.

The Manchester Evening News’ Joe Bray further detailed that Manchester City are ‘calm’ over the latest reports, and are not expecting Al Ittihad to make a move, or for De Bruyne to leave the club this summer.

It is further pointed out that the Belgium international captain is set to return to Manchester City’s City Football Academy training base on August 5 after an extended summer break following his exploits at the European Championships in Germany.

Additional reporting from MailSport’s Jack Gaughan has further explained that while Al Ittihad have ‘made overtures’ for the Belgian, he is expected to remain at Manchester City.

Manchester City are likely to have started to process of sounding out potential successors to Kevin De Bruyne’s position in their first-team squad, with several figures holding admiration for the likes of Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala and Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz.

However, any swoop for either of the stand-out Germany internationals remains highly unlikely this summer, and Manchester City are expected to invest in such high-profile figures from the summer of 2025.

With that being said, there remains a possibility that the Premier League champions could look to recruit in the attacking and creative midfield roles, in an attempt to reduce the physical demand on De Bruyne.

Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze is understood to be one name of interest to Manchester City, however it remains unknown as to whether the club are willing to firm up that interest this summer with an official offer to Selhurst Park bosses.