LET’S be honest, no-one ever seriously expected he would go quietly, did they?
After all, when you’ve been a big noise at the Etihad for a decade, it’s not going to be a hush hush farewell come the final curtain call.
ReutersKevin De Bruyne scored as Man City beat Wolves 1-0[/caption]
RexErling Haaland was all smiles as City moved third in the table[/caption]
Because for all Kevin De Bruyne has never sparked headlines with off-field rants or blasts, he has made many on-field ones with flashes of genius for Man City.
Like Friday night, for example, where he joined Lionel Messi as the only player to reach 250 goal involvements under Pep Guardiola.
And so an evening which began with fans stunned by Pep’s admission he may quit when his contract is up here, ended with all eyes on a man who is definitely about to.
Not by choice, admittedly. De Bruyne’s decade as an Etihad darling is coming to a close because his manager opted not to offer him a new deal when this one expires.
But the sad fact increasingly dawning on the fans who idolise the Belgian so much he will surely be the next with a statue, is that the sands of time are trickling away.
And De Bruyne, playing his penultimate match at the stadium he’s called home since 2015, is certainly living up to the old adage of going out leaving ‘em wanting more.
A couple of weeks ago it was by scoring one and creating three others in a five-star, five-goal win over FA Cup final opponents Crystal Palace.
Against Wolves it was with the deliberate, side footed – although admittedly slightly scuffed – opener that broke the stalemate in a turgid game.
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The headline act in a down-the-bill display from Guardiola’s fallen champions, who somehow got through another of the finals they must win to seal a top five finish.
To be fair, there was precious little sign of them doing so until De Bruyne pounced, ten minutes before the break, as City huffed and puffed their way to, well nowhere really.
The fans who stayed away for the first six minutes, in protest at the number of years it has been since an increase in available season tickets, missed nothing.
Not in terms of edge-of-the-seat raids from the champions of the last four years, yet now not even sure of a Champions League-placed finish.
Indeed, the first serious one should have put Wolves ahead, when Jean-Ricner Bellegarde beat the offside trap a yard inside the City half.
He could have shot but took the safer option of squaring for Marshall Munetsi to tap into an empty net.
Well it should have been the safer option, at least. But Bellegarde over-hit the delivery, a stretching Munetsi wouldn’t have reached it with extendable legs and the chance was gone.
GettyDe Bruyne showed his class with a strike 10 minutes before half-time[/caption]
GettyThe Belgian is leaving this summer but showed he is still an important player[/caption]
A slap in the face which stung City into action? Well it was the spark for an even closer call…but once again created by those in old gold, not sky blue.
Matheus Cunha may well be plying his trade in Manchester on a regular basis next term, if United push the boat out and make him the marquee summer striker they crave.
But he gave a glimpse of what the can expected with an angled burst into the box that ended with the ball falling kindly for Rayan Ait-Nouri.
The Algerian’s first effort came back off the foot of the post, but his second from the rebound was heading in until Josko Gvardiol hacked it away.
Finally, finally, stumbling City kicked into top gear, Nico O’Reilly stinging Jose Sa’s fingertips with a rising drive.
GettyDe Bruyne joined Lionel Messi as the only players to reach 250 goal involvements for Pep Guardiola[/caption]
ReutersCity are now looking on course to play in Europe’s top flight next term[/caption]
And then, 35 minutes in, came the moment they all wanted…from the goalscorer they all prayed it would be.
Jeremy Doku’s quickstep blast took him to the byline, before deliberately pulling it back for the ginger genius.
De Bruyne has hit plenty of crisper strikes over his decade as an Etihad darling, but this one still found the net despite bouncing first. Almost a bump-ball goal, you could say.
Still, they all count and after a first half that was hardly blow-your-socks off impressive, City were quite happy to take it.
Not that it ever looked like opening floodgates, or anything remotely close. There were still too many close calls for that.
RexErling Haaland was back on the bench after his injury layoff[/caption]
AlamyWolves were left flat after missing several good chances[/caption]
None more than Cunha’s out-of-the-blue snapshot that rattled an upright
Ultimately, though, City hung on as their fans showed Guardiola what they thought of him by belting out his name louder and longer than ever in the closing stages.
Mind you, nothing like the ear-splitting ovation they gave to De Bruyne when he took his bow five minutes from the end.
With good reason, too. They didn’t need telling who had got them out of the you-know-what yet again.
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