On the recent episode of the Blood Red podcast for the Liverpool Echo, Guy Clarke, Matt Whitty, Ian Doyle, Mark Baker, Steve Dawson and Ross Strachan looked back on the 4-0 defeat against Manchester City on Thursday night.
The Reds were far from their best at the Etihad, as goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling, Phil Foden and an own-goal from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain secured the three points for the Citizens, one week on from Jurgen Klopp’s side becoming champions.
One topic of conversation on the podcast was the performance of Manchester City ace De Bruyne, which is unsurprising considering he contributed one goal and an assist in a sparkling performance that saw him earn a superb 8.63/10 rating (per WhoScored).
Here’s what Doyle had to say about the Belgian midfielder in his post-match assessment:
“On the stroke of half time, Phil Foden got his goal after a great pass from Kevin De Bruyne. De Bruyne was excellent all the way through, he was Manchester City’s best player.”
TIF Thoughts…
Although Doyle suggests that De Bruyne was City’s best player on the evening, WhoScored suggests that Foden pipped the former Wolfsburg midfielder to the Man of the Match award, as his goal and assist saw him earn an 8.66 rating. However, it is easy to understand why Doyle was so complimentary of the 29-year-old, as his average rating of 7.91 this season sees him rated as the best player in the Premier League (per WhoScored).
Is De Bruyne the best player in the Premier League?
Yes
No
If the Citizens do end up missing out on Champions League football next season, perhaps the Belgian would even be one for the Reds to consider in the summer transfer window, although his current Transfermarkt value of £108 million suggests that negotiating a deal would prove difficult.