Paul Merson Notes Man City’s Unfamiliar Appearance in the Absence of Key Star
When Kevin De Bruyne is absent from the lineup, according to Paul Merson, Manchester City are a whole different team.
The midfielder entered the game in the 64th minute to take Mateo Kovacic’s place in City’s Community Shield match against Arsenal last weekend.
One analyst has discussed the impact the Belgian has on the club, particularly when he isn’t playing, as the new Premier League season is due to begin this evening with Pep Guardiola’s team playing Burnley.
Merson says City are unrecognizable without De Bruyne
Merson recently wrote on De Bruyne and his absence in a blog for Sportskeeda previewing the first round of Premier League games of the new season.
When Kevin De Bruyne is absent from Manchester City’s lineup, he claimed, “they play like a different team.”
The 32-year-old, whom City paid £55 million to sign back in 2015, managed to make two crucial passes and provide the assist for Cole Palmer’s goal during his 26 minutes against Arsenal last weekend, demonstrating the kind of impact he had on the game.
De Bruyne outperformed every City player in terms of critical passes (96), shot-generating actions (176), and goal-producing actions (31) during the previous Premier League season, further demonstrating his prowess at creating opportunities for goals.
However, the Citizens still managed to win five of the six league games in which he was absent while scoring 16 goals.
Guardiola’s team shown that they can function without De Bruyne on rare occasions, but it’s obvious that they’re a better team with him since they can be a regular threat to score.