Manchester City star offered £50million deal to leave with Man Utd target among three ‘replacements’ for De Bruyne

Manchester City have reportedly shortlisted three potential ‘replacements’ for Kevin De Bruyne following interest from the Saudi Pro League.

De Bruyne missed most of the 2023/24 campaign through injury but shone during the campaign, scoring four goals and providing ten assists in his 18 Premier League appearances.

Despite this, the Belgian international is heavily linked with a move elsewhere as he has just entered the final year of his contract at Manchester City.

A report from Caught offside claims that De Bruyne “does not rule out a move to the Saudi Pro League” and that he “is attracting interest from Al Ittihad and Al Nassr in particular”.

“It is understood that De Bruyne is ready to meet with Saudi negotiators after numerous approaches for the Belgium international over the last year or so, with the 33-year-old long a top target for the project in Saudi Arabia.

“While De Bruyne has spoken publicly to suggest he is happy to stay at City, it appears the club are also not ruling out taking the opportunity to cash in on him, as there have been no developments regarding a potential new deal at the Etihad Stadium.”

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Who could replace De Bruyne at Manchester City?

As for potential replacements, the report claims that “City are considering signing some big names for their creative midfield department”, with “players like Joao Neves (Who is Man Utd targeting?), Florian Wirtz and Xavi Simons are considered potential replacements in this area of ​​their squad.

“Replacing such a star name will not be easy, but sources have told CaughtOffside that Benfica and Portugal wonderkid Neves is an option the club admire, even if it appears to be a difficult deal due to his €120m release clause and Financial Fair Play considerations.

“Wirtz will not be leaving Bayer Leverkusen this summer but he appears to be another long-term target City could turn to, while Simons is also well-liked but currently appears to be closing in on leaving Paris Saint-Germain for a loan move to Bayern Munich.”

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Brazil international Ederson is another Manchester City player who could leave for the Saudi Pro League in the coming weeks/months.

Spanish journalist Cesar Luis Merlo claims Ederson was “offered” a £50million contract by Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nasr.

He said: “Al-Nassr made a $1 million offer to Ederson, the Manchester City goalkeeper.

“They are offering him a two-year contract for a total fee of 60 million euros. If the goalkeeper gives the green light, they will seek to secure his departure from England.”