Kevin De Bruyne has returned to Manchester City and may make his long-awaited FA Cup return against Huddersfield.
January seems like the perfect month to bring De Bruyne back into action following a long layoff—four games, plus a winter break to a training camp in Abu Dhabi—with Erling Haaland, John Stones, and Jeremy Doku also able to return gradually. This is presuming City make it to the FA Cup fourth round.
Yet with the return of both De Bruyne and Haaland, Man City finds itself facing a predicament involving five of its finest offensive players. Where does that leave the dynamic duo of Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden? De Bruyne is anticipated to return to his preferred position at the top of midfield.
Yet with the return of both De Bruyne and Haaland, Man City finds itself facing a predicament involving five of its finest offensive players. Where does that leave the dynamic duo of Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden? De Bruyne is anticipated to return to his preferred position at the top of midfield.
Though the answer isn’t, the problem is. Foden and Alvarez are unable to play there if De Bruyne and Haaland return as the first choice at positions ten and nine, respectively. Bernardo Silva will have to shift from his current strong position on the right wing if Foden goes out wide.
Bernardo may return to midfield, but it’s evident that City has performed at its best over the past 18 months when he is on the right side of a front three, providing Pep Guardiola with the attacking control he so desperately needs. Foden and Bernardo are fortunate in that they can play numerous positions; Alvarez is unlucky in that De Bruyne and Haaland will occupy his best two positions.
The key to City’s success in 2023 and earlier was their versatility, since they were able to fill a wide range of positions with a relatively small roster. The only players granted the luxury of playing just one position are Haaland and Ruben Dias. Sometimes even Rodri is asked to proceed. Another who is seldom asked to give up the number-ten spot is De Bruyne.
Until 2024, when he is occasionally utilized to slide deeper to provide room for Alvarez, Foden, and Bernardo to alternate between the attacking midfield and right midfield positions. Admittedly, De Bruyne would have to move out of his optimal area, curl balls into Haaland from inside the right locations, or break past the lines quickly.
But if De Bruyne, lining up as an eight behind Rodri, can free up Foden in the tight spaces where Guardiola adores him, or if keeping Alvarez nearer to Haaland, which has worked well when the Belgian is out, then it might be a workable option that keeps the team motivated and happy.
For the most part of 2023, De Bruyne was preoccupied with his hamstring injury. Before his workload at Burnley became too great and he missed the last four months of the season, he played through a tear to lead City to the triple crown. Perhaps he won’t feel as at ease as he has so often when he opens the legs and drives ahead.
His tactical awareness and passing sense make him a valuable addition to any midfield. Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard, and Steven Gerrard, among others, advanced in age and delegated more running to their younger teammates. After his injury, perhaps De Bruyne can reinvent himself similarly.
For the next month, Guardiola will have plenty of time to work with De Bruyne and the team to develop a system that maximises the performance of his finest players. De Bruyne, Haaland, Alvarez, Foden, and Bernardo are all too tall to play in the same starting lineup, according to basic math. If Jack Grealish and Jeremy Doku share time on the left, then at least one has to leave. Even so, De Bruyne’s return will leave Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes with insufficient minutes.
While there is no ideal answer, might De Bruyne returning to the midfield be a compromise that maximizes the performance of the greatest number of players?