City signed Kevin De Bruyne 11 years ago today – which seems as good an excuse as any to revisit some predictions from Phil Thompson and Paul Merson that haven’t exactly stood the test of time.
City completed the signing of De Bruyne from Wolfsburg on 30 August 2015, bringing the Belgian back to the Premier League after his brief spell at Chelsea.
Not everyone was convinced.
Speaking on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday around the time of the transfer, Thompson questioned where De Bruyne would fit into a City side containing David Silva and suggested the Belgian could initially find himself on the bench.
Merson was also part of a discussion in which the size of City’s investment came under scrutiny.
The footage has resurfaced on social media to mark the anniversary.
Eleven years later, it makes for quite a watch.
De Bruyne delivered a fairly emphatic answer
There was at least some logic behind the scepticism.
De Bruyne had barely featured for Chelsea before leaving England and rebuilding his reputation in Germany, first during a loan spell at Werder Bremen and then spectacularly at Wolfsburg.
City saw enough to make him their record signing.
What followed settled the argument.
De Bruyne spent 10 years at City, making 422 appearances, scoring 108 goals and helping the club win 19 major trophies.
Those included six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, five League Cups and the Champions League, while he was also twice named PFA Players’ Player of the Year.
Thompson and Merson were hardly alone in questioning big-money transfers, and predicting how a player will fare is part of a pundit’s job.
The unfortunate bit is that television never forgets.
Eleven years after De Bruyne arrived in Manchester, this particular piece of footage is still doing the rounds.
You suspect it might have a few anniversaries left in it yet.
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