Should Manchester City Continue Their Pursuit of Wolfsburg's Kevin De Bruyne?
Manchester City have backed themselves into a rather expensive corner this summer.
To secure the signature of England's best under-21 attacking midfielder in Raheem Sterling—spending £49 million in the process—the Citizens have effectively made all young talents deemed better by public consensus to be priced at no less than £49 million.
VfL Wolfsburg have one such footballer in Kevin De Bruyne and, according to the Daily Mail's Chris Wheeler, are requesting £50 million from Manchester City to commence negotiations.
For a club willing to give their Premier League rivals Liverpool £49 million, paying a Bundesliga side just £1 million more for a better player seems the easiest decision of this summer transfer window—but in football, things rarely follow the common sense path.
Manuel Pellegrini has two quality, central-midfield options in Yaya Toure and David Silva. The Ivory Coast and Spain internationals have combined for 49 goals and 33 assists in the Premier League since 2013/14, but now 32 and 29 years old respectively, City could be looking for long-term security in central attacking midfield.
De Bruyne would seem an ideal candidate for the Sky Blues' next "No. 10."
2014/15 was a tremendous season for the 24-year-old midfielder. Given a central, creative role with little responsibility in terms of defending, the Belgian international took Germany by storm. Ten goals and 20 assists in the Bundesliga have no doubt inflated Wolfsburg's original investment into the tens of millions.
Bought from Chelsea for £18 million in the 2014 January transfer window, De Bruyne's stock has reached astronomical levels, and the evidence is clear to anyone who watches him play. Vision, pace, awareness, technical ability and an all-important footballing brain are his foremost traits—traits that Man City need in their aging squad.
There are two hiccups to this rumoured transfer, though.
The first is UEFA financial fair play regulations. Not since the 2009/10 season have Sir Alex Ferguson's "noisy neighbours" spent over £100 million in one term. Yet, they were still given harsh punishments by UEFA's regulators, meaning last season they were handcuffed.
This season, however, City should have the financial wherewithal to spend in copious amounts on select footballers, but they might regret not disbursing their funds in a more calculated fashion—specifically locating world-class defenders.
Of course, De Bruyne would be a fantastic addition at the Etihad, but he would also be a great piece anywhere. What Pellegrini and the City Football Group must ask themselves is: "Can we last another season with Toure and Silva as our main central attacking options?"
If the answer is yes, they could try to convince De Bruyne and Wolfsburg to wait another year—continuing his development in a smaller Bundesliga pond before making his big-money move to Manchester's ocean in summer 2016.
If the answer is no—attempting to beat other potential suitors, primarily local rivals Manchester United—the English champions once removed could pull the trigger on the blossomed Belgian, placing all their proverbial eggs in the £100 million De Bruyne/Sterling basket.
Manchester City's second hiccup is De Bruyne's personal ambitions.
A conceivable scenario is the Citizens offering £60 million for the midfielder, Wolfsburg accepting (as how could they not), but De Bruyne electing to stay in Germany.
After a torrid and largely tumultuous career (or lack thereof) with Jose Mourinho's Chelsea, there seems every possibility the 24-year-old is enjoying being Die Wolfe's main man and does not feel like risking an English bench. Furthermore, securing 2015/16 Champions League football with his German outfit, De Bruyne might bail at the wrong time on Dieter Hecking's promising Wolfsburg project.
Man City's desperation can play out in numerous ways, but if they are truly intent on giving Pellegrini another chance to prove himself, they must be willing to spend.
Whether De Bruyne is a player they need at the moment is up for debate, but City will undoubtedly need a player with his skill set and overall quality in the near future.
Paying £50 million for a young 20-something (who only has one year to justify the fee) is a roll of football's dubious dice, but it is a gamble the Citizens have already made once this summer.
"If once is good, is twice better?"
They must ask.
They must answer.
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.
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