Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne has proven that he is one of the world’s best football players, and it impresses a well-known analyst.
Manchester City failed to claim the top spot in the Premier League on Sunday evening. The defending champions were held to a 1-1 draw against direct rivals Liverpool FC. Nonetheless, City had taken the lead in a spectacular manner.
In what might have been the last direct confrontation between Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola, spectators were treated to a top-class match with an incredibly high intensity. And City handled it best in the first half. The reigning champions got the first chances and even took the lead.
Midway through the first period, the visitors were awarded a corner. What followed was a tactical masterpiece. Nathan Aké first blocked the defender at the near post, allowing John Stones to emerge there. Then Kevin De Bruyne placed the corner kick perfectly into this zone, and Stones scored the 0-1.
Touch of Genius
In England, analysts were impressed by this brilliant move. Gary Neville particularly praised De Bruyne. “That looked like genius. How is it possible that he noticed Stones’ sprint? It’s clearly something they’ve trained on. Those kinds of things don’t just happen,” he said on Sky Sports.
According to Roy Keane, it was especially KDB’s technique in taking the kick that made the difference in this phase. “There are few players in the world who can do that,” said the Irishman. However, Jamie Carragher felt that Liverpool could have done better defensively. “It’s mainly De Bruyne and the quality he brings, but I think Mac Allister could react more aggressively at the near post.”
Dissatisfied after a Logical Substitution
It must be said: the much-discussed corner kick was one of the rare highlights for De Bruyne. Besides, he didn’t play a great match. Coach Pep Guardiola therefore took him off early, clearly not to the Belgian’s liking. But the Spanish head coach didn’t make much of it. “He has the chance in the next game to prove how wrong I was,” Guardiola further challenged his key player.
