Aston Villa exploring ‘blockbuster’ De Bruyne deal after ruthless call on loan star

Aston Villa are ready to wave goodbye to a loan star and sign Manchester City icon, Kevin De Bruyne, as his replacement, while Fabrizio Romano has confirmed the Belgian already has a tempting offer on the table.

De Bruyne, 33, will leave Man City upon expiry of his contract this summer. The legendary playmaker does not intend to retire and previously admitted his surprise at NOT being offered an extension by City.

“I have not had any offer the whole year, they just took a decision,” said De Bruyne.

“Obviously, I was a bit surprised but I just have to accept it. Honestly, I still think I can perform at this level like I’m showing, but I understand clubs have to make decisions.”

De Bruyne and his family are not inclined to move to Saudi Arabia. Instead, a move to MLS is possible, as is remaining in a top European league.

And according to a fresh update from Football Insider, Aston Villa could give De Bruyne the chance to take a measure of revenge on Man City for not showing more faith in the veteran.

They state De Bruyne is ‘attracted’ to the idea of signing with a different Premier League side and Villa are now ‘exploring a blockbuster deal.’

Unai Emery doesn’t lack for impactful options in attacking areas at present, though Leon Bailey has become a target for the Saudi Pro League and Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio are both loanees.

Villa hold an option to buy Rashford for £40m. Asensio’s agreement was a straight loan and does not contain a mechanism to turn the move permanent.

Asensio has dazzled during his loan stint, notching eight goals in 17 matches. However, FI state Villa believe signing De Bruyne on a free is a more sound investment than negotiating a transfer fee with PSG for Asensio.

READ MORE: Man City to sign free-scoring PSG forward after agreement CONFIRMED

Aiding Villa’s attempts to lure De Bruyne to Midlands would be the securing of Champions League qualification.

Villa currently sit seventh in the table and fifth position would be good enough to qualify for the UCL.

De Bruyne already has tempting American offer

As mentioned, a move across the Atlantic is possible, with Inter Miami holding ‘discovery rights’ to the player. Put simply, that means Inter Miami have first refusal among MLS sides.

However, ESPN state Inter Miami’s quota of designated players (stars whose wages don’t count towards the salary cap) is already full.

New York City FC and DC United have also expressed interest in De Bruyne. But according to Fabrizio Romano, the favourite to sign the playmaker if he does move to America is Chicago Fire.

Reporting on X in the early hours of Friday morning, Romano wrote: “Despite reports on Inter Miami, Chicago Fire keep pushing to sign Kevin De Bruyne as free agent…”

Romano previously revealed a fortnight ago that Chicago Fire had approached De Bruyne. And with the club having space in their designated player list, De Bruyne would be handsomely rewarded from a financial perspective if committing to the move.

Latest Aston Villa & Man City news

⭐️ Romano rates Liverpool chances of stunning Aston Villa raid with scouts wowed by ‘crucial’ star

⭐️ Man City thunder into contention for shock signing of former Norwich star – sources

De Bruyne’s biggest Man City achievements

By Samuel Bannister

De Bruyne was a big signing for City in August 2015, but expectations on how he would fare were mixed.

In the decade since, De Bruyne has gone on to:

➡️ Be named on the 23-man shortlist for the 2015 Ballon d’Or (October 2015)

➡️ Score the winning goal to take City to the Champions League semi-finals for the first time ever (April 2016)

➡️ Win his first of five EFL Cups, the first trophy of Pep Guardiola’s City reign (February 2018)

➡️ Get the assist for the goal that enabled champions City to reach 100 points in the 2017-18 Premier League season (May 2018)

➡️ Win the Premier League Playmaker of the Season award for having the most assists (May 2018)

➡️ Score a goal and provide two assists to help City complete the treble by winning the 2018-19 FA Cup (May 2019)

➡️ Score the goal that would be chosen as City’s goal of the season against Newcastle (November 2019)

➡️ Reach 50 goals for City by scoring against Real Madrid in the Champions League (February 2020)

➡️ Equal Thierry Henry’s record for the most assists in a Premier League season with 20 (July 2020)

➡️ Become the first ever City player to win the PFA Player of the Year award (September 2020)

➡️ Help City reach the Champions League final for the first time (April 2021)

➡️ Win the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award for the second time (June 2021)

➡️ Score four goals in just 24 minutes to inspire a 5-1 win over Wolves, including the third-quickest Premier League hat-trick ever all scored with his ‘weak’ foot (May 2022)

➡️ Match the City record for the most club player of the season wins by claiming a fourth title after also being their top scorer in the league for 2021-22 (May 2022)

➡️ Be voted the Premier League Player of the Season for a second time (May 2022)

➡️ Finally win the Champions League after scoring in three consecutive semi-finals (June 2022)

➡️ Earn the Premier League Playmaker of the Season title for a third time (May 2023)

➡️ Win his second FA Cup with City, starting in the win over rivals Man Utd in the final (June 2023)

➡️ Reach the landmark of 100 goals for City (April 2024)

➡️ Become a Premier League winner for the sixth time (May 2024)