After a mixed first year under Pep Guardiola, which saw the club finish third in the Premier League, 15 points behind Antonio Conte’s Chelsea, Manchester City desperately wanted to rectify everything that went wrong last year.
Spending big in the summer, the Cityzens sort out their full-back problems (to an extent), and added goalkeeper Ederson and midfielder Bernardo Silva to an already strong squad.
One man, however, who has been key to the club’s steamrolling form this season has been Kevin De Bruyne, who has scored four goals and assisted teammates nine times in 19 appearances so far.
Statistics aside, his overall play has been a joy to behold, and the 26-year-old is now up for an award in his home country: Belgian Sportsman of the Year.
However, despite his unquestionable talent, the 26-year-old’s nomination for the award raised a few eyebrows in the media, with RTBF labelling his inclusion ‘surprising’.
Why? He didn’t win anything last season, while both David Goffin (tennis) and Greg Van Avermaet (cycling) have.
De Bruyne’s nomination puts him ahead of Philipe Gilbert (cycling) and Thierry Neuville (rally), who the outlet see as more deserving candidates.
The midfielder has already won the award once, doing so in 2015.
