Kevin De Bruyne: Decoding his 150 assists for Manchester City
Kevin De Bruyne could be the difference as Manchester City aim for another trophy-filled season. After missing majority part of the season with an injury, De Bruyne has returned with a bang. He seems to have lifted City with his presence. On Monday night versus Brentford in the Premier League, he raced to 150 assists for City. We decode his stats.
Why does this story matter?
De Bruyne has made just seven appearances in the ongoing season. Back in August, De Bruyne suffered a hamstring injury and missed about four months of action. He made his return against Huddersfield in the FA Cup and has since then played in all five games. De Bruyne has made goals for fun, clocking four assists and a goal since his return to action.
150 assists for Manchester City
Since joining the club in the summer of 2015, De Bruyne has been a leader in City's dominance. More so, his numbers saw a massive jump with Pep Guardiola's arrival in 2016. Making his 363rd appearance for the club, the peerless De Bruyne reached 150 assists in the 3-1 win over Brentford. He assisted against Burnley, Newcastle (Premier League), and Huddersfield before this.
De Bruyne owns the third-most assists in Premier League history
De Bruyne has the third-highest number of assists in Premier League history. He surpassed Wayne Rooney's record of 103 in the match versus Burnley. Ryan Giggs (162) and Cesc Fabregas (111) are ahead of the Belgian. De Bruyne owns 105 assists from 246 appearances, including one for Chelsea (2013-14). In April 2023, De Bruyne became the fastest to 100 Premier League assists (237 games).
Breaking down his season-wise tally (Premier League)
De Bruyne managed nine assists and seven goals in 2015-16. In 2016-17, he clocked 18 assists (G6). 16 assists (G8) followed him in 2017-18. In the 2018-19 season, he had two assists (G2). In 2019-20, he had 33 goals involvement (A20 G13). He managed 12 assists (G6) in 2020-21, 8 assists (G15) in 2021-22, 16 assists (G7) in 2022-23, three assists (G1) in 2023-24.
De Bruyne is a three-time Playmaker award winner
De Bruyne has won the Premier League Playmaker award on three occasions (2017-18, 2019-20, 2022-23). De Bruyne, who owns 65 Premier League goals, has awarded Player of the Season twice (2019-20 and 2021-22). He has won the Premier League title on five occasions, besides two Goal of the Month awards. 2019-20 remains his best season in the Premier League individually.
Record 28 assists in 2022-23 across competitions
De Bruyne's eight assists for Erling Haaland in PL 2022-23, is the most one City player has assisted another in a single season. KDB's 28 assists across competitions for City in 2022-23 was eight more than any other player from Europe's top five leagues. He owns 20-plus assists as a City player in four different seasons: 2016-17 (20), 2017-18 (21), 2019-20 (22), 2022-23 (28).
Breaking down his assists in all competitions
Besides his 104 Premier League assists, De Bruyne owns 25 assists for Man City in the UEFA Champions League. He has another 13 assists in the FA Cup. Meanwhile, he has clocked seven assists in the Carabao Cup, and one in the FA Community Shield.
Fourth-highest scorer for the club
Besides his 150 assists, the Belgian ace has clocked 97 goals for City. He is the fourth-highest scorer for the club after Sergio Aguero (260), Raheem Sterling (131), and Shaun Goater (99). De Bruyne owns 14 goals in the Champions League, 65 in the Premier League, 8 in the FA Cup and 10 in the Carabao Cup respectively.
