Pep Guardiola Eyes $141 Million Star as Kevin De Bruyne’s ‘Successor’ at Manchester City: Reports

You don’t always see Pep Guardiola revealing his plans, but the Manchester City coach always thinks about adding value to his squad. The brain of the Spanish man always keeps thinking about grabbing the best players in the market. Already making deals for two youngsters, Caludio Echeverri and Savio, this year, Guardiola is now eyeing the Bundesliga topper, according to reports.

The English champions have lost quite a few players after a successful season last year with the likes of Riyadh Mahrez and Aymeric Laporte. Hence, Guardiola seems to be taking measures to keep up with the outgoing players and targeting Florian Wirtz as a potential successor to Kevin De Bruyne, according to Bild.

Even though there is no news about De Bruyne’s future at the club, the German player may prove to be an ideal replacement for the Belgian. Being mentored by former Liverpool and Real Madrid ace Xabi Alonso, Wirtz’s season has been nothing short of spectacular.

On the other hand, his team, Bayer Leverkusen, is giving Bayern Munich a run for their money with his help by scoring eight goals and providing 16 assists this season. Bayer has not lost a single game and is on the verge of breaking a 12-year record for the Bavarians. Hence, the player is grabbing eyeballs around the world.

Meanwhile, the signing is not expected to be smooth for Pep Guardiola, despite having huge funds from the UAE. It is reported that even clubs like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Liverpool are interested in the 20-year-old. Additionally, the player is also estimated to be valued at $141 million.

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Things can get tricky as clubs like Liverpool and Bayern Munich are reportedly interested in hiring Xabi Alonso and can have a slight advantage in running for the star. The player shares a great bond with the manager, who can influence him to play for the club he lands up at. Meanwhile, Manchester City could definitely be considering an alternate for De Bruyne after a few hiccups.

Is Pep Guardiola preparing for the exit of Kevin De Bruyne?

The 32-year-old has been a stalwart at the Etihad for the last eight years. But De Bruyne has reportedly gained interest from the Saudi Pro League, even though there is no talk of him returning the favor. Apart from that, the player, who will turn 33 in June, has been suffering from recurrent injuries this season. It can prompt Pep Guardiola to get proactive about finding an appropriate successor.

READ MORE – Pep Guardiola Reveals Why Kevin De Bruyne Will Never Play as a Deep Midfielder for Manchester City

De Bruyne’s main contribution came last year, when he assisted Erling Haaland and the team to a treble with a monstrous 31 assists, apart from 10 goals that he scored. Nevertheless, nothing can guarantee that he will stay in Manchester. Therefore, with so many factors in consideration, it would be interesting to see if the German midfielder will arrive at Etihad or not.