Argentine giants River Plate have been told to engineer surprise talks for Manchester City captain Kevin De Bruyne after his preferred next move was ruled out.
De Bruyne has been forced to play a limited role for Man City at times this season. His game time has been affected by a hamstring injury and Pep Guardiola also relying on other players such as Phil Foden and January arrival Omar Marmoush.
De Bruyne has been a fantastic servant to City and has etched his name in the club’s history books. But it is unclear whether the Citizens will extend his contract beyond this summer due to his fitness issues.
The Belgian is expected to move to Major League Soccer, Saudi Arabia or stay in Europe if he does leave the Etihad.
Although, a shock new destination could soon emerge. Ex-River Plate striker Carlos Morete has urged his former club – who have won the Argentine title 38 times – to try and convince De Bruyne on a sensational move to Buenos Aires.
In an interview with River Monumental (as cited by TyC Sports), Morete sent a message to head coach Marcelo Gallardo and the River Plate leadership.
“River Plate have a manager and brains. Maybe they called and I don’t know, or it wasn’t made public. Why didn’t anyone take a plane to Manchester and go find out about De Bruyne?” he said.
Morete added: “He’s 33 years old. You pay him $20m (£15.5m / €18.5m), he’s free, and see if you can bring him in or not.
“He’ll make you a champion, make you fight for championships, and solve all your problems. Go check out his physical condition. He’s a real star and he’s not that old. Make him an offer. He’ll leave City for free, pay him $20m a year, and bring him in.
“If you buy a player like the Colombian [Kevin Castano] or [Sebastian] Driussi, you’ve made a mess of millions of dollars. Here, you don’t pay a penny for his transfer, and you’re bringing in a star. Everything River brought doesn’t solve anything.”
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Kevin De Bruyne evaluating his options
While River Plate are undoubtedly one of the biggest clubs in South America, it is hard to see De Bruyne agreeing such a left-field move.
De Bruyne is thought to be keen on remaining at City for another season. It has been claimed that he is willing to accept a reduced role to make this a reality.
But City are unsure about this and are looking to bring in a younger attacking midfielder, such as Florian Wirtz.
If De Bruyne is told he will be leaving via a free transfer, then he would ideally like to move to the US. San Diego FC have been in talks with his entourage recently.
However, their sporting director, Tyler Heaps, has admitted that De Bruyne will likely be out of their price range due to his big wage demands.
De Bruyne will likely now wait and see if other MLS clubs make contact for his signature.
If not, then the Premier League and Champions League winner may enter discussions with the Saudis about a lucrative switch to the Middle East.
Man City transfers: Grealish update; Wirtz decision coming
Jack Grealish is expected to follow De Bruyne out of City this summer as he searches for guaranteed starts.
TEAMtalk can confirm that Chelsea are keen on Grealish as they hunt recruits at left wing.
As mentioned previously, City have identified Bayer Leverkusen’s Wirtz as a possible successor to De Bruyne.
The German will ‘soon’ make a final decision on whether he will secure a major transfer this summer or extend his deal at Leverkusen.
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