“I don’t see it that way” – Kevin De Bruyne defends Champions League record and assesses recent Manchester City form

Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne carries no regrets from his side’s shortcomings in the Champions League under Pep Guardiola.

The Premier League champions can register a berth in the last eight of Europe’s premier club competition for a sixth consecutive year by beating RB Leipzig at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday evening.

Josko Gvardiol’s 70th-minute header cancelled out Riyad Mahrez’s first half strike in the opening leg in Germany as City once again failed to see out a game despite taking the lead in dominant first 45-minute display.

The Blues remain in the hunt for a third successive Premier League title as they look to chase down leaders Arsenal, who maintained their five-point advantage at the top of the pile with a routine 3-0 victory against Fulham on Sunday.

City are set to welcome former club captain Vincent Kompany back to the Etihad Stadium this weekend, with Burnley set to face Pep Guardiola’s men in the FA Cup quarter-final.

After starting Saturday’s 1-0 triumph away at Crystal Palace on the bench, Kevin De Bruyne is in line to return to the starting XI against RB Leipzig on Tuesday evening.

The 31-year-old playmaker has received criticism for a drop in his standards since the Qatar World Cup, though five goals and 18 assists in 34 outings across all competitions this term may seem to suggest otherwise.

Pep Guardiola admitted De Bruyne could benefit from going back to his principles and focusing on the minor details of his game as he addressed the stick directed towards the Belgium international of late.

After a brief cameo at Selhurst Park at the weekend, De Bruyne can send a timely message to his doubters in an all-important Round of 16 return leg tie against RB Leipzig.

The midfielder, who was signed by Manuel Pellegrini from VfL Wolfsburg in 2015, has been arguably Manchester City’s best and most reliable performer under Pep Guardiola, who is yet to lead the Blues past the finish line in Europe.

Despite City’s struggles in the latter stages of the Champions League under Guardiola, De Bruyne believes he has been lucky to enjoy the success he has at the Etihad Stadium.

“I don’t see it that way,” the Belgian said in a press conference on Monday. “If we just win the Champions League and nothing else, you can call (Manchester City) the best in Europe but I don’t know what the criteria is for being the best team in the league.

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“Everyone has their own opinion, we want to be the best every year. Eight years has been pretty great. I don’t regret the things I do. Whatever competition (it may be), I try to win. You lose more than you win. I’ve won a lot, I’m fortunate.”

City have endured a series of gutting, disappointing exits from the Champions League since 2016, against the likes of Tottenham and Real Madrid in 2019 and 2022 respectively, with the Blues suffering a narrow loss in their maiden final in 2021 against Chelsea.

De Bruyne added: “If you care about the noise, we’ve not won it (the Champions League) but we (Manchester City) have done really well. People base everything on only winning.

“There’s a lot of circumstances, the (Real) Madrid game, Tottenham – we deserved to go through. (There are) moments in games, these things happen.

“I want to win it (the Champions League), but I know as long as we don’t, I’ll get the same questions. If people judge you on that, we just try and win the games, be the best version we can be.”

City have slipped up in the Premier League title race a few times since the New Year, recording defeats against Manchester United and Tottenham and dropping crucial points against Nottingham Forest, which has seen Arsenal establish a five-point lead in first place.

“It’s been fine this year, the league has changed a bit. The lower teams are able to spend more money and buy better players, all teams have so much quality,” De Bruyne said on City’s recet form.

“The level of difficulty is getting tougher. We are second (and) in three competitions. In comparison with other years, I feel no different. There are some games we should have won, it depends.”

De Bruyne is expected to start against Leipzig on Wednesday should Guardiola look to revert to his most trusted men in a must-win tie for Manchester City at home.